The Blood Red Rose
by cheri1
Summary: 10Rose The Doctor and Rose return home to visit Jackie and Rose finds herself seduced by a vampire who wants to make her his bride. Hints of slash in some chapters. FINISHED
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

"Bloody Hell, why did I agree to work late?"

Melissa quickened her pace and glanced around her nervously as she walked down the dimly lit street towards her flat. The brisk November wind felt like ice on her skin and blew her long, strawberry blonde hair away from her face as she headed home. She grunted as she fought the wind wanting nothing more than to be home and safe. She had never liked being out after dark, but her boss has insisted she stay late to finish some paperwork. Now, she was regretting her decision with each darkened alleyway she passed. The neighborhood she lived in wasn't that safe to begin with and her greatest fear was that someone would jump out of the shadows and mug or rape her. Being only 20 years old with a meager job as a secretary, she had only two options, live with her mum or live on her own in a bad neighborhood. Her mother had begged her to stay with her, but she felt the time had come to claim her independence and carve out a life for herself away from dear old mum. She had made her decision, and now she would have to live with the consequences. She only hoped that God was on her side, especially tonight.

She stopped short. Her ears perked up and her heart began to beat out of her chest as she sensed someone behind her. Gulping back her fear, she looked around and saw a man leaning against the wall smiling at her. His dark eyes twinkled at her while the wind whipped his raven hair around his ghost white face. The smile widened, and he nodded a hello to her.

"Lovely evening isn't it?" he said with a heavy Scottish accent.

"Um…yes," Melissa said.

She edged away from him.

"I…have to go," she said.

Her mind raced while she considered alternatives to her destination. Something about this man didn't seem right to her, and the last thing she wanted was to lead him straight to her flat. She racked her brain wondering where the police station was. She had only been in the neighborhood a couple of months, so she had no idea where to go. She suddenly regretted not familiarizing herself with her surroundings.

"What's your hurry?" the man said.

He smiled warmly at her while he slowly walked towards her.

"I…I have to go meet my boyfriend," Melissa said.

"Oh, I should have known," he said. "I regret that someone already snatched up a pretty lass like you. I won't keep you from your date then."

Melissa breathed a sigh of relief. Blessing God silently, she nodded her goodbyes and turned to go determined to get home as fast as she could before anything else happened. She chanced a look back while she was walking and noticed that the man was nowhere in sight. She paused and held her breath. She looked around making sure he wasn't following her. Her body relaxed, she saw no one.

"Musta went through the alley," she said.

Hoping that was the case, she resumed walking.

"Tomorrow morning after work I'm gonna find out where everything is around here," she said.

She gasped when a hand shot out from a nearby alleyway and pulled her into the gloom.

"I'm afraid I have other plans for you, my dear," the man said.

Melissa's eyes widened in horror. She felt the man wrapped his arm around her body pressing her to him and clamped his other hand around her mouth preventing her from crying out. She struggled in his grip when she felt the man lowered his head to her neck. She shivered involuntarily when his ice-cold skin met hers. She let out a muffled scream praying to God that someone, anyone would hear her while she felt his lips kissing her neck. Her prayers went unanswered, however, and Melissa swooned in the man's arms while she watched her worst nightmares come true. She was going to be raped and then possibly killed and all because of her fervent need for independence.

"Now hold still, lassie and it won't hurt much," the man said.

Melissa let out a pained scream when she felt a sharp pain in her neck. Her struggling increased, as she felt something warm streaming down her neck. Glancing down, she noticed with horror that blood was staining the white blouse she was wearing. She tried once more to break free from his grasp, but it was no use. The man was too strong. She felt her strength ebbing from her body while the man continued to feed. She suddenly realized that the man must be a vampire although she quickly dismissed that notion. Vampires weren't real. Were they? She had no time to consider whether he was because she was fading fast. She heard her heart beating in her ears while she watched the alleyway darken. She felt her life slipping from her body and knew that this was the end.

_Oh God, why did I have to be so stupid?_ She thought. _Why didn't I ask for a lift home? What will this do to mum? And my cat? Who will feed Rex? I…_

The thoughts ebbed from her mind along with her strength; she felt her hold on life slip away. Her heart beat like a drum in her ears drowning out everything else, the blackness around her became impenetrable, and she slipped through death's door. The last thing she heard was her heart slowing and then with one last thud it ceased to beat and her soul escaped its mortal shell and departed through the tunnel to the other side.

The man smiled when he pulled his mouth away from Melissa's neck and laid her gently on the ground.

"Fare thee well, sweet lassie. May flights of angels sing thee to thy rest," he said.

With a chuckle, he dissolved into the darkness of the alley leaving the woman's corpse for the police.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

"Ugh! I can't stand these little visits with your mum," the Doctor said.

He shoved his hands in his pockets and leaned against the hallway while Rose knocked on her mother's door.

"Just behave yourself," Rose said.

"Yeah, yeah, I know."

He glanced at the door when it opened.

"Rose!" Jackie said throwing her arms around her daughter. "Oh, it's so good to see ya!"

Rose returned the hug and gave Jackie a peck on the cheek.

"Come inside and tell me what's been going on," Jackie said, pulling her inside. "Oh God, I've missed ya so much!"

The Doctor started to go inside and grunted as the door was slammed in his face. Sighing, he banged on the door. He stepped back when Jackie flung it open.

"What?" Jackie said.

"Hi. I'm working my way through the flat selling magazine subscriptions to pay for my schooling. Could I interest you in a subscription to Menopause Monthly?"

Jackie glared at him.

"No? How about Harpies Bizarre?"

"Yeah, that's real funny that is. What do you want?"

The Doctor raised his eyebrow.

"To come in. I was right behind Rose, you know," he said.

"You got a TARDIS. Go back to it and leave me and Rose alone for a change."

"Mum, let the Doctor in."

Jackie looked at her daughter standing behind her and looked back at the Doctor who was giving her a smug grin. Sighing, she reluctantly stepped back and glared at the Doctor who strolled over and stood beside Rose. She shut the door.

"I s'pose you'll be wantin' tea as well," Jackie said.

"Mum."

"Well, if tea's gonna be too much trouble for you; I suppose I could just wet a flannel and suck on that."

"Doctor."

Rose glared at him and her mum. Jackie threw up her hands, muttered, and stomped off towards the kitchen. Rose looked at the Doctor

"Honestly, would it kill you guys to be nice to each other while I'm here?"

"Hey, she's the one that slammed the door in my face!" he said.

"Yeah and you came right back with the smart remark as soon as she opened it."

"Well what was I supposed to say after that?"

"Nothing!"

"Nope, sorry Rose, saying nothing is not my style," the Doctor said. "Besides, I have to keep your mum in line. If I let her off once, she'll start slamming the door in my face all the time. Give your mum an inch, you know…"

Rose sighed and headed towards the couch.

"What?" the Doctor said. "I can't stand up for myself? I'm the Oncoming Storm, you know. If it gets out that I didn't stand up to a human, the Daleks and all the other baddies won't take me seriously any more. I have to protect my rep, Rose."

"All right, whatever, Doctor," Rose said.

She rolled her eyes when he sat down beside her and put his arm around her shoulder. He smiled at Jackie when she brought out a small tray and sat it down on the coffee table in front of them. The Doctor leaned up, stared at the cup of tea in front of him, and tentatively put a finger in it. He quickly took it out and slurped the liquid off it.

"What are you doing?" Rose said.

"Checking to make sure my tea is hot," the Doctor said.

Rose shook her head. She picked up the other cup and snuggled up beside the Doctor.

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Rose sighed and stared up at the ceiling. Her mother had insisted they spend the night and after a fierce argument, the Doctor finally gave in. She leaned over the side of the bed and saw that he was wide-awake and was staring up at the ceiling while he lay on a sleeping bag on the floor. He glanced over at her.

"Can't sleep?" he said in a hushed voice.

"Nah."

"You okay?" he said.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just that…I'm not used to this bed anymore. I'm used to being in the TARDIS now, and I'm used to you lying beside me. I wish mum would let you do it."

"Yeah, well after that spat, I figured it would be pushing things a bit if I went ahead with our usual cuddle," he said.

He gave her a soft smile, and his hand reached up and stroked her hair.

"I'm right here though," he said.

Rose nodded. He leaned up long enough to get a kiss on the cheek before settling back down.

"I love you," Rose said.

"Mmmm, I love you too."

Rose rolled onto her back, contented. She closed her eyes while she tried to relax her body. After about thirty minutes, she gave up. With a sigh of resignation, she carefully sat up.

"Where are you going?"

She leaned up.

"I'm gonna go for a quick walk around the block. Maybe that will tire me out."

"You want me to come with you?"

"No, I'll be alright."

"You sure?" the Doctor said.

He leaned up and glanced at her alarm clock.

"It's nearly midnight."

"I'll be alright. I know this neighborhood. It's safe. Anyway, I won't be a minute. I used to do this when I was younger, and I couldn't get to sleep, and it usually helped."

"Okay, well, be careful."

"I will."

She gave the Doctor a peck on the cheek and rose from the bed.

He watched her silently while she walked over and grabbed her jacket. Putting it on, she headed towards the door.

"Hey."

Rose turned and looked at him.

"Yeah?"

"Since you're going out, could you stop somewhere and pick me up some candy, and a Coke, and perhaps a sandwich. Oh, and some cheese, and some crisps, and a pizza would be fantastic."

"No, Doctor, I'm not picking you up any of that."

"Drat, I was hoping I could convince you to go on a snack run for me."

He giggled when Rose rolled her eyes.

"Behave," she said.

"Don't I always?"

Rose paused and looked at him.

"I'm not gonna bother answering that because I know I'd be here all night listing all the times you didn't behave," she said.

She went out the door and then leaned back in.

"Oh and stay away from mum," she said.

"You mean I can't go dip her hand in warm water and see if she pees all over herself?"

"No!"

"Just checking."

He laughed and winked at her. She rolled her eyes and shut the door behind her.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

With a soft thump, Ian Mulligan landed on the roof of the apartment building. He hunkered down and wiped the spilt blood from his lips while he scanned his surroundings. He had just fed again on an Irish girl with flowing red hair. She had been drunk and heading home after spending the night partying at a nightclub. She was alone and eager for company, and it was all too easy for him to lure her into a nearby alleyway. She was so drunk she barely offered any resistance when he began to feed. He licked his hand and let out a moan when he tasted the remains. The salty taste lingered on his tongue and invaded his senses. It was a shame humans didn't have that much blood in them. He loved to linger and take his time when feeding. He loved feeling their skin against his body. So soft and warm compared to his cold flesh. He loved the sound of their heartbeat in his ears. Loved listening to it fade away along with their life force. It was a shame it was over too soon.

He had been alive now for nearly 200 years and in that time, he had traveled all over Europe and had seen many changes. Unlike some Immortals, he had chosen to keep up with the times and had kept up to date with all the new gadgets and technological advances that the humans had come up. He loved the internet and even managed to find a few immortals online that he could chat with. He had an IPod, a cell phone, and a blackberry that he had stolen from a couple of the humans he had fed on. He had also stolen some money and a couple of credit cards and had managed to get himself a nice TV, a DVD player and some DVD's. He loved to lie in his coffin and watch Interview with the Vampire. It was one of his favorite movies. He actually liked all the vampire movies. Even the cheaply made B movies that made him laugh. He loved seeing his kind viewed through the eyes of humans. Some things they got right about his kind, and some things he got wrong. One thing he could say about humans though. They had a wonderful imagination. Especially the whole shape shifting thing. He often wished he could turn into a vampire bat, or a wolf, or mist, but sadly that was one of the things the humans had gotten wrong about the immortals.

One thing they had gotten right, however, was vampire brides. Vampires did mate and often did turn humans into vampires for just such a purpose. In his 200 years of existence, Ian had never had a mate. He longed for one, and he was actively searching, but no one seemed suitable. Ian wanted someone unique, someone who would be worthy of his affection. Unfortunately, most of the humans he observed were nothing more than mindless cattle that headed off to work every day and then came home, ate, watched TV, and went to bed so they could get up the next day and repeat the cycle. Ian wanted someone who thought outside the box. Someone who saw life as something to be lived, instead of a drudge to get through.

He shook his head. He hadn't found anyone worthy of him yet and he doubted he ever would.

He glanced down when he noticed someone walking out of the apartment building and heading off into the night. He leaned forward slightly, and his eyes widened when he saw she was a pretty, blonde woman. Moreover, she was all by herself. Ian leaned back up. He had already fed tonight so he wouldn't bother with…

He leaned forward again. His finely tuned senses had picked up something from this woman. Something different from other humans. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but he sensed a kind of power within her. He observed her for a few moments. Her stride was confident, self-assured. She didn't look around fearfully like he had seen most women do. Intrigued, he lifted off from the roof and followed her silently. He looked down upon her and noticed something that would be invisible to most human eyes, but, with his enhanced sight, he could see it as plain as day. The woman had a beautiful golden aura around her body. With her blonde hair and pretty face, the golden glow gave her an almost angelic appearance, and Ian lowered himself slightly to get a better look at it. He floated behind her admiring her appearance when she suddenly stopped in her tracks. Ian quickly rose up into the sky when the woman spun around and looked at her surroundings. He stared at her intently and saw that there was no fear in her eyes or in her body language. She looked around her for a moment and then with a shrug, turned and resumed her confident stride. Ian smiled to himself.

_Could this be the mate I have been searching for?_ He thought. _She certainly seems like someone who is worthy to be my bride. I think I shall get to know her a little better and see if she is truly the one._

Ian rose up higher so the woman wouldn't detect him and quickly flew on ahead.

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"It sure is chilly out here tonight," Rose said.

She wrapped her arms around her body and quickened her pace wanting nothing more than to hurry back to her warm bed and the Doctor.

"I don't care what my mum thinks; I want the Doctor beside me tonight," she said. "Especially since I'll need to warm back up after being out here in the cold."

She glanced beside her and instantly regretting not accepting the Doctor's offer to come with her. After spending almost all her time with him, it felt strange to look over and not see him beside her.

"All the more reason for me to get back."

She turned a corner and stopped short when she spied a man sitting on a bench a few meters away from her. She inched closer towards the grass when she walked near him.

"Evening."

Rose nodded her head at him in return and quickened her pace. She had never seen the man before, but the fact that he was sitting by himself on a bench at 12:30 at night didn't sit well with her. She wished more than ever that she had let the Doctor accompany her.

"Where you going in such a hurry, little lassie?" the man said.

Rose ignored him and sped up her pace. She gasped when the man suddenly seized her from behind. She balled up her fist and quickly spun around.

"You don't wanna mess with me, buddy. So don't even try it!" she said.

The man held up his hands

"Whoa, whoa, I wasn't gonna do anything," he said. "I was just wondering what a pretty girl like you was doing out here in the middle of the night."

Rose raised her chin.

"I was taking a walk and if it's all the same to you, I'd like to keep on walking. My boyfriend is back at my flat and if I'm gone too long, he'll start worrying and come looking for me and trust me, you don't want him on your case."

"Well, you're a feisty little one aren't you?" the man said grinning.

Rose rolled her eyes and tried to walk around him. She gasped when the man grabbed her shoulders.

"Wait, you didn't even tell me your name," he said.

"Yeah, well maybe that's because I don't want to," Rose said. "Now get your bloody hands off me before I break them off at the wrists."

"Now, now, don't be like that."

Rose gasped when the man suddenly began to shove her backwards towards a nearby wall.

"Let go of me!" she said.

She let out a grunt when her back hit the wall. She opened her mouth to scream, but the man quickly shoved his hand over hers.

"Shhhh, don't wanna wake up the neighborhood, do we?" he said.

Rose let out a muffled scream while the man lowered his face to hers. She began to send out a mental plea for help to the Doctor hoping with all her heart he would notice it and come help her.

_Please God, let me get out of this alive!_ She thought. _Please don't let the Doctor and my mum wake up tomorrow and find me dead. Please! _

He gave her a gentle smile.

"Now, now, don't fight. I just want to talk," the man said.

Rose tried to get away from the man, but his hold on her was too strong. Realizing it wouldn't do any good to resist; she relaxed her body and hoped that the man would let her walk away with her life.

Determined not to show any fear, she stared directly into the man's pale blue eyes. She suddenly felt her fear draining away along with any resistance. She heard the man's voice echoing in her head.

_I won't hurt you. Tell me about yourself._

Rose felt the man take his hand away from her face. Against her will, her mouth opened and she began to speak.

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The Doctor stared up at the ceiling. Time Lords didn't need much sleep, so the only reason he had elected to stay in the room with Rose was so he could keep her company and be near her while she slept.

He raised his head and frowned when he stared at the alarm clock. It was nearing 12:45 and Rose still hadn't returned.

"What could be keeping her?" he said. "It doesn't take that long to circle the block."

He wondered for a moment if she had returned to the TARDIS.

"Nah," he said. "She wouldn't go back there without telling me first."

He rose and walked to the window. Parting the curtains, he looked out hoping to see Rose walking back towards the apartment. He let the curtain drop when he saw no sign of her.

"Where is she?"

He sat there for a few moments and then hopped up.

"That's it, I'm gonna go look for her," he said. "I feel like taking a walk anyway. It's too quiet in here."

Grabbing his trench coat, he slung it over his shoulder and hurried out the door.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Ian smiled to himself. He and Rose sat on the bench. He ran his finger down Rose's cheek. Rose. Such a beautiful name, and it was perfect for her too. She looked like a Rose. The more he thought about this, the more he became convinced that Rose would make a good mate. He stared at her blank expression.

"Pretty soon you won't have to be hypnotized," he said. "You will come with me willingly."

He leaned in and whispered in her ear.

"Won't you?"

"Yes, I will," Rose said.

Ian smiled at that. He reached up and slowly pulled down the zipper on her jacket. While Rose stared ahead blankly, he reached his hand up under her shirt and cupped her breast.

"Kiss me."

Rose leaned in and met his lips. They shared a passionate kiss while he moved up under her bra and began to caress her breast.

"Oh yes, you are perfect," Ian said.

He moved his lips to her neck and began to suck gently on her skin. He moaned, as he tasted the soft smooth skin and smelt the overpowering scent of the blood flowing through her jugular vein. He leaned back up and opened his mouth wide allowing his canine teeth to extend into fangs.

"And now I will make you mine," he said. "Are you ready?"

"Yes."

His mouth curved into a smile while he stroked the back of her hair.

"You will die, but only for a moment. When you awake, you will be immortal. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

"Excellent."

Ian lowered his mouth and positioned it over her jugular vein. He paused a moment taking in the scent of her blood, and the rhythmic beat of her heart. He took a deep breath and started to bite down.

"Rose!"

Ian jerked his head up when he heard a man's voice nearby.

"Rose, where are you?"

Ian looked at Rose.

"Who is he?" he said.

"He is the Doctor."

"Doctor? Doctor who?"

"He is the Doctor. That is his name."

"Who is he?" Ian said. "What is his relation to you?"

"He is my boyfriend."

Ian raised his eyebrows.

"Oh he is, is he? So you weren't lying about that? Well, I'll soon sort this out. In the meantime, I'll let you go back with him, so there will be no suspicion. You won't remember me or what we did, but you are mine and when I summon you, you will come to me willingly. Is that understood?"

"Yes."

"Good. Now, Rose, awake!"

He quickly retreated into the shadows just as the Doctor rounded the corner.

"Rose?" the Doctor said.

Rose blinked her eyes and stared up at the Doctor who was hurrying towards her. He sat down beside her on the bench and put his arm around her.

"Rose? What's wrong?" the Doctor said. "Why are you sitting here?"

Rose looked around her, confused.

"I…I don't know," she said. "I…must have gotten tired and sat down and then…I guess I nodded off."

She looked at the Doctor.

"What time is it?"

"It's nearly one in the morning," he said. "I waited for you and when you didn't come back I decided to look for you."

He frowned when he noticed her confused look. A concerned look passed over his face while he brushed the hair away from her face.

"Are you sure you're alright, Rose?" he said.

"I don't know. I don't know how I ended up on this bench," Rose said. "I remember walking this way, but I can't remember sitting down."

She shook her head.

"I must have been tired."

The Doctor nodded.

"Well, come on then. I'll get you back home to your nice warm bed," he said.

He put his arm around her back and helped her to stand. He held her tightly while Rose leaned against him. They walked home while he kept a worried eye on her.

_Rose looks knackered,_ he thought. _I guess the walk worked. _

He couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong though.

_It's my imagination. I've fought so many monsters over the years that my brain automatically kicks into overdrive whenever something out of the ordinary happens._

He kissed the top of her head when Rose let out a sigh and leaned her head against her shoulder.

_Even when you're half asleep, you still look like a vision, _he thought. _I'm so glad you're in my life, my precious Rose. I can't imagine what I would do if anything happened to you. _

Giving her another kiss on the head, he guided her across the parking lot and back into the apartment building.

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Ian hovered in the air. He watched the Doctor and Rose enter the building. He had been observing his rival from a distance and from what he could see; he would be no match for him.

_Scrawny little git,_ he thought. _I could break him in half without even trying_. _What Rose ever saw in him is beyond me._

He smiled.

_Now she has me and I'll give her a better life than that wanker ever could. She will become immortal, and she will spend eternity in my arms. And, after I get through making her mine, she will forget this Doctor chap completely._

The smile widened.

_In fact, I might even let the Doctor become her first meal. After all, I will have to drain most of her blood as part of the process. She will be hungry when she awakes from her temporary sleep. It would be fitting on her to feast on him. Out with the old and in with the new. _

He blew a kiss at the building.

"Sleep well, my bride. Tomorrow shall be your last day in the sun," he said. "And my rival's last day on Earth."

He let out a chuckle and flew off into the night looking for a snack.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

Rose squinted while she looked at her surroundings. She noticed she was standing in an old, dilapidated house. The power was off. She stood still trying to figure out where she was. All she could see was a bare room with ancient, crumbling walls. There was a chill in the air and Rose held herself trying to keep warm.

Hello?" Doctor? Are you in here?"

"Rose."

Rose jerked her head around when she heard a faint voice calling her name.

"Doctor? Is that you?"

"Rose. Come to me."

Rose frowned. The voice was faint. So faint that she couldn't be sure if it was the Doctor or not.

"Doctor!"

"Rose, it's me. It's your beloved. Come to me."

Rose still couldn't be sure it was the Doctor who was calling her. But, she decided to trust her instincts and take a chance that it was him.

"I'm coming, Doctor!" she said.

"Come to me, Rose. Come."

Rose slowly walked out of the room following the sound of the voice. Every once in awhile, she would stop and call back while she tried to pinpoint the exact location. She walked through the house and noticed that all of the rooms so far were bare. She guessed she was in an abandoned house but how did she and the Doctor get there?

"Doctor?" she said.

"Rose."

The voice was louder now, and Rose froze when she realized it was not the Doctor's familiar accent. The accent she was hearing was Scottish. Realizing her mistake, she turned to exit the way she had come and was surprised to discover that the door had disappeared. She whirled back around and saw the door at the other end had also vanished. Panicked, Rose ran to the two huge windows on the left side of the room, and she gasped as they also disappeared. The room was plunged into total darkness. Rose felt around for the nearest wall hoping to find the exit.

"Doctor! Help me!"

Her hand hit the wall. Rose put her other hand up and frantically felt for a doorknob or any kind of exit.

"Help! Doctor, help me!"

She froze when a light illuminated the wall in front of her. Turning, she noticed a strange man standing behind her holding a candle in his hand. She stared at the man taking in his pale, white skin and long, black hair. She had never seen this man before, and yet, he seemed oddly familiar to her.

"Who are you?"

He smiled at her.

"I am Ian."

"Where am I?"

"You are in my house."

"Where is the Doctor?"

"He is near. Would you like me to take you to him?"

Rose hesitated. She sensed she was walking into a trap. However, looking at Ian, Rose suddenly felt the same kind of peace and security that she felt whenever she was around the Doctor. He looked so harmless and somehow she knew she was safe with him. Dismissing the notion of a trap, she walked towards him.

"Yes, I want to see the Doctor," she said.

"Are you sure?"

Rose paused. She wanted Ian to take her to the Doctor, but suddenly, she wasn't so sure she wanted to see him.

_Why wouldn't I want to see him?_ she thought. _He's my friend, my lover._

But, when she looked at Ian; she suddenly began to doubt her feelings for the Doctor.

_What's wrong with me? I love the Doctor…don't I?_

She backed away from Ian when he drew nearer to her.

"Leave me alone. I…I want to go. Let me go," she said.

"Rose, do not fight me. Do not fight the love that is growing between us," Ian said.

"I don't love you. I love the Doctor," she said.

Ian smiled and reached out his hand when Rose's back hit the wall. His voice suddenly became otherworldly.

"Rose."

Rose stopped in her tracks. The voice echoed inside her brain pushing out all other thoughts. She felt her willpower slipping away. Ian put his arms around her and whispered in her ear.

"You are mine. You belong to me. The Doctor is a part of your past now. You no longer care for him. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

"Do you love me, Rose?"

"Yes."

"Then come, Rose and I will show you your destiny."

Rose nodded. She took his hand and let him lead her. The door in front of them reopened, and they stepped through it into the next room. Rose paused and looked down at the Doctor who was lying bound and gagged on the floor. For a moment, she wanted to run to him and set him free, but this thought was pushed from her mind, and she stood and stared at him impassively while he struggled to break free of his bonds.

Ian stepped between her and the Doctor and cupped her face in his hands.

"And now my love, we begin the ritual," he said.

Rose nodded. She and Ian fell to their knees and began to undress each other as the Doctor let out muffled screams of anger.

Ian put his hands on Rose's face and leaned in for a passionate kiss. Rose returned it without a second thought for the captive Time Lord who by now was using all his strength to try to get free and get to her. Her hands ran down his back, as Ian put his lips to her neck and began to suck gently. Rose let out an ecstatic moan and kissed her lover's temple while the Doctor watched in anguished silence. She glanced over Ian's shoulder at her former lover for a moment and then with a disdainful snort lowered her head to Ian's neck and began to suck and bite at his flesh.

"And now, my love, it begins," Ian said.

There was a brief pause and then Rose let out a gasp as she felt his fangs penetrate her skin. She let out a groan and raked her fingernails down his back ignoring the Doctor who was by now in tears. She kissed Ian's neck and shoulder and began to feel weak as her blood was slowly drained from her body. Her strength ebbing away, she laid her head on her lover's shoulder and closed her eyes as her heart began to slow down. Just before she became unconscious, she felt Ian guide her around to the front of his body.

"Drink, Rose," he said.

Rose slowly opened her eyes. Through her half-closed lids, she could just make out a trickle of blood coming from a gash above Ian's left breast. Instinctively, she moved to it and began to suckle on it while Ian held her head to it.

Suddenly, she began to convulse when she felt her body shutting down. Ian gently laid her on the ground, and she felt herself growing weaker and weaker. She heard the Doctor's anguished moans, but now it sounded like it was a million miles away. With a sigh, she closed her eyes and listened to her heartbeat slowly fading away. Then, with one final beat, her heart became still, and Rose saw only darkness.

For a moment, her soul hovered above her body watching everything with detached interest. Then she felt something draw her towards the ceiling and looking up, she noticed a tunnel with a bright light at the end of it. Feeling drawn to it, she began to float upwards and into it. She paused long enough to look back and see her corpse opening its eyes and looking around. Then, she went further into the tunnel, and all thoughts of Earth vanished as she entered the blissful environs of Heaven.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ian stared down at his immortal mate.

"How do you feel?" he asked.

"I feel…great," Rose said. I've never felt better in my life."

"Good. I'm glad to hear it."

"I'm…hungry though."

"Well, I just the thing for that too," Ian said.

He helped her to sit up, and Rose looked over at the Doctor who was now sobbing uncontrollably. She sat and looked at him but instead of seeing him as her friend or her lover or even as a person; she saw him only as food. Salivating, she crawled towards him.

"That's it, my beloved. Feed on the Doctor," Ian said.

The Doctor stared up at Rose offering no resistance. She bent down to his neck. He nuzzled her cold, pale cheek and watched her teeth elongate into fangs. Closing his eyes, he let out a sigh of resignation when Rose bit into his jugular vein and began to feed. While she drained the life from him, he continued to nuzzle her cheek hoping that some part of her still understood that he loved her and forgave her for what she was doing.

Rose listened to the sound of his hearts fading away and suddenly became aware of what she was doing.

_No!_ she thought. _What am I doing? I'm killing the Doctor. I have to stop before he dies!_

But, to her horror, she found that she couldn't stop herself from killing him.

_No! I can't do this! I love you Doctor! I can't kill you! Please, someone stop me from doing this before it's too late!_

She listened while the Doctor's heartbeats became slower and slower and then stopped. The Doctor let out a final sigh and then he was gone.

_No! What have I done? I've murdered the Doctor! This can't be happening. He can't be dead! He can't be! No, no, noooooooooo…_

The scream inside her head became an audible one when Rose suddenly woke from her nightmare. She screamed hysterically while the Doctor leaped onto the bed and shook her.

"Rose! Rose! Wake up! It's me! It's the Doctor!" he said.

For a moment, the terror Rose felt blinded her to her surroundings. Then, she slowly calmed herself and stared up at the Doctor. For a moment, her mind didn't register that he was still alive, and then with a cry of joy she flung herself into his arms and wept, as the Doctor held her tightly to him.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

The Doctor stroked Rose's back and pushed her sweaty hair out of her face.

"Rose? Are you okay?" he said.

Rose nodded.

"What happened? What were you dreaming about?" he said.

Rose thought.

"I…I honestly can't remember," she said.

The Doctor pulled her closer and laid his chin on the top of her head. He glanced over when Jackie flung open the bedroom door and ran inside.

"What happened? I heard screaming," she said.

"It's alright. Rose just had a nightmare," the Doctor said.

Jackie breathed a sigh of relief and put her hand over her heart.

"Thank God. I thought we were under attack again," she said.

She hurried to Rose's side, sat down on the bed, and put her hand on her forehead.

"Rose, baby, are you alright?" she said.

"Yeah, I'm fine, mum. I just had a bad dream," Rose said.

"Are you sure, love?"

"Yes, mum, I get bad dreams all the time. It's nothing to worry about."

Jackie shot the Doctor an angry look.

"Funny, you never used to," she said.

"Mum, leave the Doctor alone. He's not the cause of my nightmares," Rose said.

Jackie snorted knowing that was about as far from the truth as you could get. However, she had no desire to go into another lecture about her daughter's decision to go off with the Doctor this early in the morning.

"Would you like some breakfast, love?" she said. "Would that make you feel better?"

Rose thought for a moment. She did feel hungry.

"Yeah, could I have some eggs and bacon?"

"Of course, I'll go right now and make ya some," she said.

Giving her a kiss on the cheek, she rose and with one last worried glance at her daughter went out the door and shut it behind her.

The Doctor smiled at her.

"I guess being hungry is a good sign, then," he said.

Rose nodded.

"Yeah, I guess all that walking last night made me hungry."

She sighed.

"I wish I could remember what I dreamt about though," she said.

"Well…"

Rose looked up at the Doctor.

"There is a way."

"There is?"

"Yes, but you have to trust me."

"I trust you completely," Rose said.

"Good, because I'm going to read your mind."

"You are?"

The Doctor nodded.

"Would it be okay with you if I did that?"

Rose started to open her mouth when she suddenly heard a voice in her head.

_Don't let him do it. The dream was nothing._

"Rose? Is it okay for me to scan your mind?" the Doctor said.

"Um…No, on second thought, I'd rather you didn't. The dream was nothing."

"You sure, Rose? If I can see your nightmare, I might be able to help you work through it and…"

"I'm fine!" Rose said.

She bit her lip when she saw the Doctor's stunned expression.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you," she said.

"No, it's alright. I didn't mean to intrude. Your thoughts and dreams are your own. It's none of my business."

"I'm sorry, Doctor. I really do appreciate the offer. But I'd rather just forget the dream if it's all the same to you."

The Doctor nodded and smiled at her. He leaned in for a kiss and was shocked when Rose jerked her face away. Rose stared at the hurt expression on his face and guilt flooded her mind.

"I'm sorry. I don't know why I did that," she said.

_Why did I do that?_ she thought.

She glanced over and saw the Doctor staring at her intently.

"Rose? Are you absolutely sure you're alright?" he said.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Really I am," she said. "I'm just outta sorts this morning, I guess."

The Doctor rubbed her back.

"Well, why don't you go ahead and get some breakfast and maybe you'll feel better," he said.

"Yeah."

The Doctor stared at her, worried, when she rose and walked slowly out of the room.

"It's done, love. Come and get it," Jackie said.

Rose walked to the kitchen table. She put the plate of eggs and bacon in front of her and went to pour her a glass of milk. She looked back at the bedroom.

"Is the Doctor eating?" she asked.

"No, I don't think so. He doesn't need to eat as often as humans do," Rose said. "I don't think he's hungry."

Jackie shrugged. She sat the glass of milk down in front of Rose and went to get a plate for herself.

"You want some toast, hon?"

"No, this is fine," Rose said.

"How about some music then?"

Rose nodded. She ate her food quietly while Jackie turned on the radio and turned up the volume. She sat her plate and glass of milk down on the table and sat down across from Rose. She stared at the glum expression on her daughter's face while she ate and sighed. She hated when her daughter got depressed like this. It seemed to happen more and more lately. Sometimes she wished the Doctor hadn't stumbled into their lives. Life seemed much simpler then.

Rose ate and thought about the Doctor trying to kiss her. She had never refused a kiss from him before. It was like he had suddenly become repulsive to her.

_That's absurd, s_he thought. _He isn't repulsive. I love him. _

Still, there was that voice in the back of her mind. A little tiny voice that kept telling her to leave him. And no matter how much she tried to block the voice from her mind; it kept on insisting that she should get away from the Doctor. Rose sighed, feeling utterly depressed. She ate quietly while she listened to the radio.

"That was Hotel California by the Eagles," the DJ said. "And now on Retro Breakfast we have a 70's hit by Cher."

Rose munched on her eggs and listened to 'Half Breed'. She glanced over and her eyes widened when she saw the Doctor shimmy out of her bedroom door towards her.

"Doctor," Jackie said. "What are you do--"

Her eyes widened when the Doctor began to sing loudly and off key to 'Half Breed'.

My mother married a pure Gallifree!

My father's people were ashamed of me!

Gallifreyans said I was human by law!

Humans tried to dissect me with a blowtorch and saaaaaaaaaaaw!

Rose snorted out laughter and watched the Doctor dance wildly around the living room.

Half Breed! That's all I ever heard!

Half Breed! How I loved to hate the word!

Half Breed! He's no good at all!

Both sides were against me since the day I was booooooorn!

"Alright, Doctor, that'll do!" Jackie said. "My neighbors don't want to listen to your singing!"

The Doctor smiled at Rose when he heard her giggle. He was hoping he would be able to get a smile out of her. He looked at her with love when she dropped the fork on her plate and put her hand over her mouth to keep the giggles in.

Encouraged, the Doctor walked over, sat down beside her, and took a strip of bacon off her plate.

"Oooo, bacon."

Rose tried not to look at him while he chewed the bacon and made googly eyes at her. She looked over when she felt him tapping her on the shoulder and giggled when he opened his mouth, stuck out his tongue, and showed her the chewed up bacon on the tip of his tongue.

"Honestly, Doctor, you're worse than a child," Jackie said.

She smiled when Rose let out another giggle. The Doctor could be a pest sometimes, but she knew he cared for her daughter and was only trying to cheer her up.

The Doctor glanced down at Rose's plate.

"Oooo, 'nother piece of bacon," he said.

He snatched it up, shoved it into his mouth, and chewed with his mouth opened while Rose tried and failed to give him a stern look. He swallowed the bacon and thought for a moment as Rose picked up her glass and drank her milk. With a devilish grin, he leaned over into her ear and began to sing.

Little bunny foo foo

Hopping through the forest

Picking up the field mice

And boppin' em on the head.

Rose tried not to gag on the milk when she felt another wave of giggles coming on.

And the fairy came down and said…

Little bunny foo foo

I don't wanna see you

Picking up the field mice

And BOPPIN' em on the head.

Rose spit the milk back out into the glass and tried to give him a dirty look.

He thought for a moment and then grinned as he leaned into her ear.

Little Doctor foo foo

Ridin' in the TARDIS

Pickin' up the Daleks

And boppin' em on the head.

"Doctor, quit," Rose said. "I'm tryin' to eat."

And Rassilon came down and said,

Little Doctor foo foo

I don't wanna see you

Pickin' up the Daleks

And boppin' em on the head.

"You're a real nutter, you know that?" Rose said.

"Just trying to cheer my girl up."

Rose smiled.

"Well, it worked," she said.

The Doctor grinned at that. He leaned in for a kiss and was ecstatic when Rose didn't pull away this time.

Jackie smiled softly at them while she watched Rose poking the Doctor in the side and laughing. Sometimes the Doctor knew just what to do to make everything right.

Rose skewered a piece of egg on her fork and fed it to the Doctor. She giggled when the Doctor smacked his lips and let out a long "Mmmmmm" as he ate the egg. She put her hand on his knee, sighed contentedly when the Doctor took it, and gave it a squeeze.

_All that nonsense about leaving the Doctor was just in my head,_ she thought. _I'll never leave him and nothing will ever come between us. Not if I can help it._

She leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek and went back to eating her breakfast feeling a whole lot better than she did before


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

After breakfast, Rose was feeling well enough to go to the mall with Jackie. The Doctor had declined to come along figuring Rose and her mother needed some alone time. Besides, he needed to think over everything that had happened since last night.

So, after they left he went into Rose's room, took off his trainers and settled down on her bed. Putting his hands behind his head, he stared up at the ceiling while he went over everything that had happened.

The first thing that bothered him was Rose falling asleep on the bench. When she had left to go on the walk, she had been wide awake, and he knew that even if the walk had made her sleepy it wouldn't have knocked her out to the point where she didn't remember even sitting down on the bench. The dazed expression she had on her face didn't look like someone who had just woken up. It looked more like the expression he had seen on someone who had been hypnotized. In addition, being hypnotized would explain the baffling loss of memory.

The Doctor rose from the bed and paced around the room while he continued to think.

"If she was hypnotized, who did it and for what purpose?" he said.

He picked up a stuffed Paddington Bear sitting in the corner and fingered its coat while he continued to think.

"The dream is also bothering me," he said. "Rose has had bad dreams before. But, this one is different. I can't shake the feeling that the dream has something to do with the events of last night."

He sat the bear back down and walked over to the nightstand by Rose's bed. He fingered the lampshade on her lamp and ran his finger up and down it.

"I wish Rose would let me go into her memories and take a look," he said. "I wouldn't go into any memories she didn't want me to see. I just want to see the dream."

He sighed and sat back down on the bed.

"'Course I tried that with Reinette, and she ended up finding out more about me than I wanted her to know." He said.

He shook his head and lay down on the bed.

"Rose is different though. It wouldn't matter if she saw my memories."

He paused for a moment.

"Of course, there are some memories that not even Rose can see but now that I know it is possible to read my mind I would be better prepared to shield those thoughts from Rose."

He sighed. He hated keeping anything from Rose especially since she loved him and trusted him completely. But, he was terrified if she saw some of the things he had done in the past and some of the dark thoughts he harbored in the deep recesses of his mind, she would run away screaming, and never come back. He knew she was curious to know about his past and he longed to share it with her. But, he wasn't ready to be that open, at least not yet.

Still, the chance to see the dream was worth the risk of exposing his innermost thoughts to Rose, and he decided that he would ask her again when she got home.

He sat up on the side of the bed. The other thing that was bothering him was Rose's behavior. She had never refused a kiss from him before and her turning away from him had taken him completely by surprise. Thoughts of Cassandra flashed through his mind while he pondered her odd behavior. After the incident with Cassandra on New Earth, he had become more diligent about spotting odd little quirks in Rose's behavior in case someone else got the bright idea of possessing her body. Her yelling at him, he could chalk up to being upset about the dream, but not the kiss since Rose craved his affection and closeness whenever she did have a nightmare. He knew being in his arms and feeling his kisses comforted her whenever she got that way and her pulling away from him set off several red flags in his mind.

"Whatever happened to Rose happened when she took her walk because she was herself up until then."

He let out a frustrated sigh. He hated being in the dark about something especially when it was something that concerned Rose. He hoped he would be able to figure out what was happening before Rose got hurt.

He lay back down. He was anxious for Rose to get home now so he could ask to read her mind. He regretted letting her go, but he knew Rose valued her time with her mother and he couldn't deny her that no matter how desperate he was to be near her. He put his hands on his chest. He would just have to wait until she got home. He only hoped that she would be understanding and not bite his head off when he asked. He lay there staring up at the ceiling, felt his eyelids growing heavy and a few minutes later he drifted off to sleep.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Doctor, we're home," Jackie said.

She looked around, as she and Rose entered the flat. She dropped her bags on the floor.

"Where is he?" she said.

Rose went past her and walked over to her bedroom. She glanced in and looked back at her mother.

"He's in here asleep, mum," she said.

"Good, at least he behaved himself while we were gone," Jackie said. "And the flat is in order, so I guess that means we haven't had any alien invasion today."

She picked up the bags and took them back to her bedroom while Rose entered her bedroom and looked down at the Doctor who was snoring softly. She stared at him and reached out her hand tentatively to give his hair an affectionate ruffle when she suddenly heard that voice in the back of her head.

_Look at him._ _Lying there like he owns the place. Why doesn't he go away and leave you alone?  
_  
Rose shook the thoughts from her head and reached out her hand again to ruffle his hair. This time she succeeded, and she smiled when the Doctor slowly opened his eyes and stared at her.

"Messing up my hair again?" he said.

Rose shrugged.

"I can't help it. I love when your hair goes in a thousand different directions. It's cute."

She giggled when the Doctor rolled his eyes and smiled at her. He reached out and took her hand in his.

"Have fun at the mall?" he said.

"It was alright. I mainly just went for mum's benefit. I think the trip to the mall was just an excuse to spend more time with me."

The Doctor sat up and smoothed his hair back down.

"Rose, I need to ask you something," he said.

He patted the bed beside him, and Rose sat down.

"Rose…I know you told me no earlier but…I really want to take a look at that dream you had so could you please let me scan your mind for it? I promise I won't intrude on anything else," he said.

"Doctor, I really don't want to," Rose said.

"I know, Rose. But, I think it's important that I see it."

"Why? It's just a stupid dream. It isn't the first nightmare I've had."

"I know that, but I've had a bad feeling about things since I found you on that bench last night and I think the dream might hold a clue to that."

He took her hands in his.

"Please, Rose, let me look," he said. "I wouldn't be asking if I didn't think it was important."

Rose sighed.

_See._ _He doesn't care about what you. It's all about him and what he wants.  
_  
Rose stared into the Doctor's eyes and saw only concern and love reflected in them.

_He's not being selfish,_ she thought. _He's just worried about me._

_How do you know that? What if this is a trap? What if he's trying to get control of your mind?_

"Get control of my mind?" Rose said.

The Doctor stared at her.

"Is that what you think I'm planning to do?" he said.

"I…no…it's just a crazy thought that popped in my head just now."

She looked away as the Doctor studied her.

"I think there is something going on, Rose. I think something happened last night when you went out for the walk, and I'm going to get to the bottom of it," he said. "You've been behaving strangely and after what Cassandra did to you, I'm not taking any chances. Now, I can assure you that I'm not trying to take control of your mind, and I think you know me better than that, anyway. All I want to do is see the dream, Rose. I know it'll be painful bringing it up again but I promise I'll back off if it gets too intense for you."

He cupped her face in his hands.

"Please, Rose. If nothing else, just let me put my fears to rest," he said.

Rose sighed. She could tell there would be no living with him until he peeked at the dream. She nodded.

"Thank you, Rose," the Doctor said.

He put his fingertips to her temple.

"Now close your eyes. And open your mind to me so I can search. And if there's anything you don't want me to see, just imagine a door and close it. I promise I won't go beyond it."

Rose nodded.

"You still trust me?" he said.

Rose hesitated a moment and then nodded.

"Because I promise I won't alter your mind in any way or try to control you. I just want to see the dream and then I'm gone, okay?"

"Okay."

She closed her eyes while the Doctor put his fingers to her temple.

"Relax, Rose. I won't hurt you," he said.

Rose took a deep breath and relaxed her body while the Doctor closed his eyes and concentrated.

She frowned when various memories started to flash one right after the other.

"Remember, you have the power to block anything you don't want me to see," the Doctor said.

Rose watched her memories flicker through her mind while the Doctor searched for the dream.

"Come on, come on. Where is it?"

"How do you know what to look for?" Rose said.

"I've done this before. I had a lot of practice."

Suddenly there was a flash, and an unfamiliar scene popped up in her mind.

"Aha! Found it!"


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

The Doctor watched, as Rose looked around the empty room. After he had located the dream, he had mentally projected an image of himself into it so that he could observe and explore without being restricted by the dream's events. He came up behind Rose and watched her closely. Since it was just a dream, he went unobserved. He glanced around trying to determine the location of the dream. It was an old house, but it was unfamiliar to him. Still, he had a feeling that this house was more than just a random location. He had a feeling that it also tied in with everything else.

"Hello? Doctor, are you in here?"

"Rose."

The Doctor and Rose both looked over at the door.

"Doctor? Is that you?"

"Rose. Come to me."

The Doctor glanced at Rose's confused face. Even though the voice was faint he could still make out the Scottish accent, but that was because he had far better hearing than his companion.

"Doctor!"

"Rose, it's me. It's your beloved. Come to me."

The Doctor narrowed his eyes when his suspicions about the dream were confirmed. He knew now that this was no ordinary dream.

"Go to him, Rose, so I can get a good look at him," he said. "Guide me to him."

"I'm coming, Doctor!"

"Come to me, Rose. Come."

"At last, we can get to the bottom of this," the Doctor said.

He stuffed his hands in his pockets and followed behind Rose while she followed the sound of the voice. He kept looking around trying to take in the layout of the house and commit it to memory.

They entered a room and Rose paused when she called out the Doctor's name again. He noticed the panicked look on her face and knew that she had finally figured out it wasn't him. He watched while she turned and stared in confusion at a spot behind him. Turning, he saw the door was missing. He glanced back at her, and his hearts ached as he saw the terror on her face. He longed to put her arms around her and hold her close, but he knew she wouldn't be able to feel him. Using his keen senses, he followed close behind her and watched while the other door and the two windows vanished from sight. There was a pause and then he heard her pounding on the wall.

"Doctor! Help me!"

The Doctor came up behind her and laid a hand on her shoulder wishing that she could feel him. He was standing behind her when suddenly he saw the wall illuminated in front of them and he turned with Rose to see a man holding a candle.

"Aha, so finally the mystery man reveals himself," the Doctor said.

"Who are…"

The Doctor glanced over at Rose when he noticed she didn't finish her sentence. She saw her frozen in place, her mouth hanging open ready to finish her question. He looked back at the man who was looking directly at him.

"I believe you've seen enough," he said. "Don't want you to know too much, at least not yet."

"Who are you and what do you want with Rose?" the Doctor said.

"My name is Ian," he said. "As for what I want with Rose."

He gave him an enigmatic smile.

"That will be revealed in time," he said.

"No, it will be revealed now."

He stepped closer to Ian.

"Or do you want me to get your little secret out of you the hard way?" the Doctor said.

Ian raised his eyebrow, and he stared at the Doctor impassively.

"I don't know who you are or how you got into Rose's dream," Ian said. "But you do not scare me. I have never feared anyone; no matter how powerful they claim to be and…"

He paused. The Doctor watched while he listened intently.

"Wait," Ian said.

He stepped closer to the Doctor.

"Your heartbeat, it's so strange."

He laid his fingers against the Doctor's jugular vein.

"Your pulse, it's almost as if you have two hearts beating inside of you," he said. "How fascinating."

He looked the Doctor over.

"You are able to project a complete mental projection of yourself into Rose's mind. You must be powerful indeed."

He smiled at him.

"Not to mention beautiful," he said, running his finger down the Doctor's cheek. "I can see why Rose fancies you."

The Doctor said nothing.

Ian stepped closer and stared into the Doctor's eyes.

"Such ancient eyes," he said. "Who are you, Doctor? Perhaps you are the one who needs to reveal the secret of your identity."

"You will leave Rose alone," the Doctor said. "You will depart from her mind and never come back. Do you understand me?"

"You didn't answer my question, Doctor. Who are you? What are you? Tell me and perhaps I'll deem you worthy enough to spend eternity at our side."

He stepped closer until he was inches from the Doctor's face.

"When I say "our" I mean me and Rose, of course," he added.

"Leave her alone," the Doctor said.

"She is so beautiful. It would be a shame to let her grow old and die, don't you think, Doctor?"

The Doctor shifted uncomfortably as thoughts of Mister Finch floated through his mind.

"A rare jewel like that deserves to live forever."

"As your slave?"

"Oh no, as my consort."

He stroked the Doctor's hair.

"And you could be with us, Doctor. I was going to let Rose destroy you, but you are also too beautiful to waste on death. Join us, Doctor. Bring Rose to me willingly, and the three of us will live as equals for all eternity."

"I'm warning you one more time and that's it. Leave Rose alone. She's with me. You don't want to make an enemy of me, trust me."

"And you don't want to make an enemy of me either, Doctor."

He walked past him and stood beside the frozen image of Rose.

"Look at her, Doctor. So innocent. Do you want to see her suffer for your resistance?"

The Doctor gritted his teeth, balled up his fists and started towards him.

"Stop right there! Or I will make your beloved scream."

The Doctor froze. He stared at Ian with hate while he walked back to him.

"At midnight tonight, I will summon Rose to me. I would love for you to come with us, Doctor but if you won't accept my offer, then you will let Rose come to me without a fight."

"Never."

"Oh really? I think you will, Doctor. I think you will let her go because otherwise this will be her fate."

He gestured to the dream image of Rose and it began to move again.

"…You?" Rose finished.

Ian put his hands on either side of her head and closed his eyes. The Doctor's hearts stopped when Rose let out an agonized scream. The scream lasted for a full minute before Ian let go of her head. Rose dropped to her knees. Ian gestured to it and the image froze once more.

"That is a small sample of what awaits Rose should you try to prevent her from coming to me, Doctor," he said. "I will have her as my bride even if I have to make you carry her screaming to my door. Join her, and come to me, and I will spare both of you and show you wonders you've never dreamed of."

"What? Live as vampires throughout eternity? Is that the "wonders" you're gonna show us?"

He smirked at Ian's surprised look.

"I know what you are. I've dealt with your kind before and won. So, if I were you, I wouldn't register at Tiffany's and get the personalized coffins just yet. You might be surprised at how much of a match we are."

"You'd risk Rose's mind to fight me?"

"I would and Rose would also want me to fight for her. She means the universe to me and I'm not about to lose her to a Lestat wannabe."

"We shall see, Doctor. We shall see how powerful you are when I get through with you. I will see you cowering at my feet begging me to spare you while my beloved makes you her first meal."

"Wow, what an active imagination you have. Anne Rice oughta hire you to write for her. I'd bet you'd make a fortune."

"How droll, Doctor. We will see how witty you are after tonight."

He smirked.

"And now, I believe your little fact finding mission must end. I have control of Rose's mind now and I order you to depart."

"Enjoy your "hold" on Rose's mind because it won't last," the Doctor said.

"Like I said, we shall see; and now my beautiful, little Doctor. It's time to go."

The Doctor jerked. He felt himself being pushed out of Rose's mind. He opened his eyes and dropped his fingers from Rose's temples.

"You will never have Rose. I will stop you even if I have to give up my life to do it."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

The Doctor sipped his tea quietly while he stared off into space. After he had been forced out of Rose's mind, he had quickly tried to calm her fears only to find that she didn't remember a thing. Ian had erased the dream from her conscious memory once again and rather than make her remember it, the Doctor had quickly put his fingers back up to her temple and put her to sleep. He figured after everything that had happen she could use a rest and it would give him a chance to collect his thoughts and come up with a strategy. This was why he was currently sitting across from Jackie at her kitchen table.

After a long while, Jackie finally spoke up.

"Well?"

The Doctor focused his attention on her.

"Well, what?"

"What happened? Did you find out what is wrong with Rose?"

The Doctor sighed.

"Yeah, I did," he said.

"Well, what is it? What's wrong with her?"

The Doctor took a sip of tea.

"She's being possessed by a vampire who wants to make her his bride, and now he's after me too."

He glanced over at her and said nothing while she stared at him in silence.

"You have got to be kidding me," she said. "A vampire? You mean like Dracula?"

"No, not Dracula. This guy's name is Ian."

"And what's he gonna do then? Bite my daughter on the neck and drink her blood?"

"Either that, or he's gonna pull out a straw, stick it in her neck, and drink it that way," the Doctor said.

He coughed nervously when Jackie shot him a look.

"Sorry. Just under a lot of stress. I have to figure out how to break his hold on Rose's mind and so far I don't have very many options."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that he has control of Rose's mind, and if I don't do exactly what he wants and bring her to him at midnight, he's going to torment her until I comply. Unless I can figure out a way to get Rose out from under his mind control, I really can't fight him without endangering her."

He jumped when Jackie slammed her mug down on the table.

"I hope you do sort this out, so Rose can finally get away from you once and for all," she said. "My daughter's life has been nothing but Hell since the day she met you."

"The day I met your daughter, I saved her life. The Autons would have killed her if it wasn't for me. Since the day she walked into my TARDIS, I have done everything in my power to protect her and keep her safe. Not to mention the fact that I have shown her things she would never have seen if she had remained a bored little shop girl."

"Oh yeah, I'm sure when Rose was little, her dream was to go into outer space with an alien and get chased by monsters!"

"There are monsters everywhere you look, Jackie," The Doctor said. "There are monsters right here on planet Earth! They're called murderers and rapists, and Rose could just as conceivably walk out the door of this flat and be killed or raped by one of them. Life is filled with dangers, but smart people face the danger head on instead of cowering in a corner. Your daughter is a very, special girl, Jackie. Every time that TARDIS lands, she goes right out the front door without a second thought. She can be standing in the middle of a dangerous situation and still have a giggle about it all. To be honest, I have never seen anyone as brave as her in all my lives. Yes, it would have been much easier on her to remain here at home under mummy's watchful eye, but then she wouldn't have grown into the strong, confident woman she is today. She takes everything in stride and not once has she blamed me for exposing her to danger. She accepts it, Jackie, because she knows it comes with the territory and because all the good experiences she has have outweighed the bad ones and….because she loves me and knows that I love her and that I will fight tooth and nail to keep her safe and sound. She trusts me completely, and I will never betray that trust. I am going to free her from this bastard's influence, or so help me, Rassilon, I will die trying."

He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms over his chest.

"Now, if you want me to leave after all this, I will. But, you will let your daughter choose whether or not to go with me. She is a grown woman and entitled to make that decision of her own free will, just as she freely chose to travel with me. Because I guarantee you, Jackie, if you force her to leave me you will end up with a bitter, brokenhearted daughter and I don't think you want that."

Jackie stared at him in silence. She knew he was right about everything. Rose was twenty years old, and she had no right to tell her what to do anymore or where to go or who to love. She knew her daughter had plenty of opportunities to stay home, but she had always chosen to go with the Doctor, and she knew she would always go with him in the future.

"I'm just worried about her," she said.

The Doctor smiled.

"So am I, Jackie. That's why I'm sitting here desperately trying to come up with a plan. Every minute that passes sees him getting more of a grip on her mind. Pretty soon she'll be completely in his power and we'll be helpless to stop him."

"Wrong, my Doctor, you are already helpless to stop me."

The Doctor and Jackie looked over at Rose who was standing a few meters away from them.

"Rose?" Jackie said.

"No, it's not Rose. It's him. He's speaking through her," the Doctor said.

He stood up and fixed an angry stare on his possessed lover.

"Very good, Doctor. You are a clever little lad," Ian said.

Smirking, he walked over to the Doctor.

"Thinking up a plan to save your Rose?" he said. "Don't you realize how hopeless it is?"

"Nothing is ever hopeless," the Doctor said. "You underestimate Rose. She is a lot stronger than you think. If I can't break your hold on her, she will."

Ian chuckled.

"No, my Doctor, I'm afraid it's you who have underestimated her. Your love has blinded you to her weaknesses. You look at her and think that she is infallible. But even the strong fall, Doctor."

He smirked.

"But I understand your devotion to her. After all, she saved you, didn't she? I've been reading her mind and I know all about you now, Time Lord. You were devastated after the Time War left you alone in the universe. Then Rose came into your life like an angel of mercy and shone her light of love into the dark recesses of your soul and you clung to that light as an infant clings to its mother. You sit there and lecture her mother on allowing Rose to be free, and yet she is far from that. You keep her bound to you, Doctor, with chains of blind love because you can't stand the thought of being without her. She is your salvation, and so you lie to her and guilt her into staying because you have convinced her that if she leaves, you will fall apart completely and slip into madness. Isn't that it?"

"No!"

"But, even so, that is how Rose feels about you. Outwardly, she may claim to love you, but on the inside, she feels anger and hatred for you because you've been manipulating her all this time, so you can keep her a prisoner and fulfill your selfish needs."

"You lie. Rose doesn't think that."

"Are you sure? You said yourself that Rose is an exceptional woman. How do you know she isn't putting on an act and masking her true feelings for her whenever she's around you?"

The Doctor folded his arms over his chest.

"I want you to leave Rose's mind this instant," he said.

"Why? Because I speak the truth? Rose's thoughts don't lie."

"No, but you do. Therefore, I will say it again. Leave her mind now!"

Ian laughed.

"The pompous alien. So sure of everything and everyone. Convinced that an inferior human being could ever love him. But, the truth is, Doctor, no one will ever love you. You manipulate people to get what you want and Rose has been brainwashed by you into thinking that she loves you and that's why she left Mickey. Jackie is right. Everything was going great for Rose until you stumbled into her life with 10 lives worth of baggage."

"I said enough!" the Doctor said. "Get out of Rose now!"

"Make me, Doctor," Ian said.

He smirked while the Doctor stood by helplessly.

"You can't do anything," he said. "Not without hurting your beloved."

He inched closer to him.

"It would be a shame for you if Rose became a vegetable, wouldn't it, Doctor? How will she comfort you and heal your emotional scars when she's trapped in a brainless shell?"

Ian glanced down and saw the Doctor balling up his fists.

"You want to hit me, don't you?" he said. "But you can't because you'll be hitting her. And I doubt Rose will ever forgive you for messing up her pretty face."

He chuckled when the Doctor unclenched his fists and stepped back away from him.

"What's wrong, Doctor? Why are you backing away? Afraid you will lose control and fly into a blind rage? After all, that is what your famous for, isn't it? The Oncoming Storm that devastates everything in your path? Pity you actually do care about something for a change. It must frustrate you to have to bottle all your feelings up inside and pretend to be a happy, carefree clown when all you really want to do is take your anger out on a universe that hates you."

"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!"

"It must be hard hearing these words coming out of your lover's mouth too. But, all I'm doing is voicing the thoughts she's really thinking. The ones she's afraid to say because she's scared of hurting you."

"Rose! Fight him! I know you can do it! Resist him!"

Ian chuckled.

"She doesn't want to fight me, Doctor. She loves me. I'm offering her what she really wants. True freedom. With me, she can be free to say and do what she likes without being afraid of hurting the feelings of an alien basket case."

The Doctor gritted his teeth fighting to keep his emotions under control while Ian stared at him with glee.

"I will stop you from doing this," he said between clenched teeth. "I will free Rose and then I will stake your pathetic carcass to the ground and watch as the sunlight disintegrates you!"

"Oooo, painful. I'm afraid I have to pass though. I…"

Ian quickly ducked when Jackie tried to bring a frying pan down on his head. She gasped as he seized her wrist.

"And for the record, I knew you were going to do that. Your pathetic attempt to sneak up on me failed and now, Jackie Tyler, I bid you good night."

Without warning, Ian hit Jackie directly in the face. The Doctor yelled at him when Jackie's head snapped back, and she fell to the floor unconscious.

"You bastard!" the Doctor screamed at him.

Ian shrugged.

"Mortals. They can be so thick sometimes," he said. "Ah well, I guess she'll just have to try harder next time."

He looked at the Doctor and smirked when he saw it was taking everything he had not to rain blows down on Rose's body.

"Well, as much as I've enjoyed our little chat, I'm going to go for the moment. It's nearing sunset and I must prepare for your arrival. Remember, my Doctor, Rose must come to me by midnight, or else."

He walked over and kissed him on the lips.

"I'll see you later, my handsome Doctor," he said.

With one last chuckle, Ian receded back into Rose's subconscious. The Doctor gasped and caught Rose when she closed her eyes and slumped to the ground, unconscious. Tears fell from the Doctor's eyes as he gathered her into his embrace and held her tightly.

"Hold on, Rose. I won't fail you," he said.

Kissing her lips, he laid her gently on the floor and let her go while he turned his attention to Jackie.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

After getting both Rose and Jackie into their respective beds and checking to make sure they were all right, the Doctor walked back to the kitchen, slumped into his chair and put his head in his hands.

"I swear I'll make you pay for doing that to Rose," he said.

He hoped she wasn't aware of anything that had happened. He knew Rose would never forgive herself for hitting her own mother not to mention the fact that she would be horrified at the things she had said to him.

"I know you, Rose. I know those weren't your words coming out of your mouth. You don't think that way."

At least he hoped she didn't.

He heard a sound and raised his head. His eyes narrowed with suspicion when he saw Rose standing across from the table looking at him.

"Doctor?"

He relaxed when he recognized it was Rose who was speaking and not Ian. His brow furrowed and he suddenly became concerned for her. Rising from his chair, he walked towards her.

"Rose, you need to lie down."

"Doctor, what's happening to me?"

The Doctor's hearts ached when he heard the fear in her voice, and he took her into his arms.

"It's all right, Rose. I won't let anything happen to you, I promise," he said.

"But, what's happening to me? The last thing I remember was you telling me you wanted to check out my dream, I just woke up, and two hours have passed since then. I don't remember anything, Doctor. What's going on?"

The Doctor stared at her while he debated on whether or not he should tell her everything.

"Please, Doctor, I want to know. I can handle it."

The Doctor nodded. He didn't want to say anything, but it was better for Rose to know what they were up against. Holding her against him, he cleared his throat and began to speak.

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Rose looked up at him when he finished speaking. He had told her everything except for what Ian had said to him while Rose was under his influence. Ian's words to him had been too painful to think about, let alone repeat.

"So, if we don't come to him by midnight; he's going to torture me," Rose said

The Doctor nodded.

"Yes, if I don't obey him and bring you to him; he'll torment your mind," he said.

He stroked her hair watching silently while Rose processed everything in her mind.

"What are we going to do?"

"I am going to free you from his control. You are going to help me do that. That's what we are going to do."

"Do you know how to go about that?"

"Not yet, but you know me, I'll think of something."

"Doctor, I'm scared. I don't want to become a vampire."

The Doctor pressed her against him and kissed the top of her hand.

"You won't become a vampire, my Rose," He said. "I'll die before that happens."

Rose let out a sigh and listened to the beating of his hearts. She closed her eyes while the Doctor rubbed her back and planted feathery kisses on her face. She threw her arms tighter around the Doctor thanking God that he had come into her life. The Doctor tightened his arms in response and began to rock back and forth, as he laid his head on top of hers.

"So reel me in, my precious girl. Come on take me home. Cause my body's tired of traveling and my heart don't wish to roam."

Rose was still for a moment and then she looked up at him.

"That's beautiful," she said. "Where is that from?"

"From me. I made it up."

Rose's eyes widened.

"You? You write poetry?"

"Only when there's something to inspire me."

He looked down at Rose lovingly and grinned, as he watched her face turn a deep red.

"What? You didn't know you had a second job as a muse for me?" he said.

Rose leaned her head back against his chest.

"No, I had no idea. How does the rest of it go?"

The Doctor smiled and he recited the rest of the poem to her.

Rose felt tears come to her eyes and she wiped them away when he finished.

"That's beautiful."

"Told you I had a little muse inspiring me to write."

"Have I inspired a lot of poems then?"

"Yeah, but that one is actually the cleanest one I've thought up."

"What do you mean, cleanest?" Rose said. "What have you been writing?"

The Doctor gave her a look of innocence.

"Nothing, nothing at all really," he said.

"Really? Then recite one for me, then."

"Well, I guess I could although they are really meant to be private."

He thought a moment.

"You do know what a haiku is, right?" he said.

"Yeah."

"Well, this is one of many haikus I have thought up about you."

He cleared his throat.

Angel is near me  
Rose and I lay in the bed  
Shagging out our brains

He giggled as Rose's mouth fell open.

"What? I said they weren't clean."

He grinned and recited another.

Rose in the TARDIS  
Standing beside her Doctor  
While he feels her up

"Ha ha. Real funny," she said.

He gave her an impish grin.

There once was a girl name Rose…

Rose put her hand over his mouth.

"Alright, that's quite enough. I think I get the idea," she said.

The Doctor shrugged and laid his head on hers.

"Doctor?"

"Mmmm?"

"Why do you think Ian hasn't possessed me this time?"

The Doctor thought for a moment.

"Probably this is supposed to be our final moment alone before we become his immortal slaves or something," he said.

He looked at her.

"You know, kind of a last goodbye between lovers before we turn into undead blood sucking drones."

He rubbed her cheek.

"Because that's what delusional bad guys do, you know. They are so confident they are going to succeed that they don't mind their victims enjoying one last romantic moment together. I suppose it's also a form of sick torment as well. We're supposed to suffer, you know, knowing that it's our last hurrah."

He kissed her.

"But you just wait and see, Rose," he said. "When it's all said and done, we'll be the ones having the last laugh."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

Despite her protests, the Doctor finally urged Rose to go back to bed for a while. He wanted her beside him, but he knew she would need her rest for what lay ahead.

While she slept, he sat on the couch and stared into space going through every scenario he could think of to free her from Ian's control. He was so engrossed in his thoughts he didn't realize that Jackie was behind him until she put a hand on his shoulder. He let out a startled yell and spun around.

"I'm…I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't realize you were that deep in thought."

The Doctor breathed a sigh of relief.

"No, it's alright," the Doctor said.

He looked up at Jackie's face. Her left eye was swollen shut.

"How you feeling?" he said

"Aside from the fact that my possessed daughter knocked me out, I'm feeling just peachy," she said.

She sat down in a chair beside him.

"Don't worry, Jackie, we'll get her back," the Doctor said.

"Did you figure out a way to rescue her?"

The Doctor sighed.

"The only thing I can think of is to offer myself in exchange for her life, but I don't think he'll go for it since he wants us both. It's hard to do anything with her mind in his possession. It's not like I can rip Rose's brain from her skull and keep it from him. The mind is a tricky battlefield, and I have to be very careful because he can torment or kill her at any time. That's why I'm stuck."

Jackie watched, as he ran his hand through his hair in frustration. She smiled and reached up to pat his hand.

"You can do it, Doctor. You've saved Rose before and I know you'll save her again," she said.

The Doctor smiled his thanks and stared off into space once more. Jackie watched him for a moment and then got up to make some tea for them. When she went into the kitchen, she glanced at the wall clock and noticed that it was now nearing 9:30. Sighing, she opened the cupboard and reached for the tea.

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Jackie glanced up at the wall clock and saw it was now 11:20. Both she and the Doctor had gone through 3 cups of tea, and they were no closer to figuring out how to free Rose. The Doctor sighed, and he turned his head and glanced at the clock.

"I guess I better go wake Rose and prepare her," he said.

"There's no need, Doctor. Rose is already awake."

The Doctor and Jackie looked over as Ian walked into the room. The Doctor stood and walked over to him.

"And how am I supposed to bring Rose to you?" he said.

"I will guide her and you will follow," Ian said. "And you _will_ follow, Doctor. I can see through Rose's eyes and you will stay with her every step of the way and behave yourself. Because if I see you missing from her side or if you try something…"

He gave him an evil grin.

"Well, something nasty just might happen to your little Rosie, eh?" he said.

The Doctor gritted his teeth, and he muttered Gallifreyan curses under his breath. Ian took note of this, and his smile widened.

"Come, my little Doctor. It's time for us to meet at last," he said.

Without another word, he turned and walked towards the door. The Doctor glanced over at Jackie.

"Take care of her," she mouthed to him.

The Doctor nodded and gave her a reassuring smile before he turned his attention back to Rose and followed her out the door.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The Doctor sighed. He had been following Ian for the past half hour and every few minutes or so he kept looking back to see if he was still there. Now he was doing it again.

"Yes, I'm still with you. You can stop checking up on me now," he said.

"On the contrary, Doctor. I know how clever you are and any moment you could slip away and cause trouble so I have to keep checking up on you," Ian said.

"I won't do anything while Rose is under your control. Now quit staring at me and let's get this over with, shall we?"

"Oooo, so eager to see your new master face to face? Well, then, how can I refuse?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes while Ian turned back around and resumed walking.

_Think, think, think!_ _Come on, Doctor, you gotta figure out a way to free Rose before it's too late._

He sighed when Ian stopped ahead of him. He stopped behind him and stared at Rose's back waiting for him to go on.

_Oh, crap, he's gonna start taunting me again._

He folded his arms waiting for Ian to turn around and begin to taunt him. He frowned when nothing happened.

"What are you waiting for? I thought he were supposed to be at your place by midnight!" the Doctor said.

"Doc…tor?"

The Doctor's eyes widened and hope began to swell in his hearts.

"Rose? Rose! Fight him! You can do it! Fight his control!"

"Doctor…I'm…trying."

The Doctor quickly hurried around to the front of her body and grabbed her upper arms.

"Rose! Look at me!" he said. "Look into my eyes! I'm here, Rose! Fight him! Fight him for both our sakes. You can do it! You are the Bad Wolf! You destroyed the Dalek Emperor; a vampire is nothing to you! Fight, Rose, fight!"

He grinned when he noticed that Rose was winning. His hearts swelled with pride and love.

"That's it, Rose. I knew you could do it!" he said.

His eyes widened in terror when Rose suddenly let out a scream of pain, grabbed her head, and fell to her knees.

"No!" the Doctor said.

He fell to his knees beside her and watched helplessly while Rose screamed and writhed in pain.

"No! Stop it!" he said. "You've won! Don't hurt her! We won't resist! Please stop!"

The Doctor gritted his teeth when the scream of pain turned into a shriek of laughter.

"Damn you," he muttered.

"You see, Doctor. Not even your pride and joy can resist me," Ian said. "I am stronger than even the power within her. After all that, all you got was the sight of your beloved in agony. There is nothing you can do to stop me apart from killing her."

He rose to his feet and smirked when the Doctor did the same.

"Come along, Doctor. Time's a wastin'," he said.

The Doctor glared at him and stiffened when he kissed him on the lips. Letting out a little chuckle, he beckoned and moved past him.

The Doctor turned and followed him.

"It isn't over yet, Ian," he said. "Just you wait."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

"Here we are, Doctor."

The Doctor looked up at the crumbling, Victorian house standing before them.

"What, no castle?" he said.

"Mmmm, how amusing, my little pet," Ian said, stroking his cheek. "I'll enjoy that wit of yours along with this handsome body you have."

The Doctor snorted.

"Come along, I'm dying to meet you."

He paused and let out a little giggle.

"Dying to meet you. How droll. I'm extremely witty as well, don't you think?"

"Oh yeah, you're just a laugh a minute," the Doctor said.

He took the Doctor's hand.

"This way, Doctor," he said.

He led him up the front steps.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The Doctor looked around while Ian led him through the house. He recognized much of it from Rose's dream. He looked down at her and wondered if she was aware of anything that was happening. She had been strong enough to break Ian's hold on her mind, so it could be possible she was observing events and was powerless to act. Hoping that was the case, the Doctor laid a hand briefly on her shoulder hoping that Rose could feel it and gain courage and strength from knowing he was still near her. Enough he hoped that she might be able to mount another defense against him. He knew without her help in driving him from her mind, there wasn't much he could do.

They stopped in the middle of one of the rooms, and the Doctor noticed a door off to his right. Ian smiled at him and opened it. The Doctor blinked when light from the room blinded him momentarily. Ian looked back at him and pointed down the stairs.

"This way," he said.

The Doctor sighed and stuffed his hands in his pockets while he followed Ian down the steps. They neared the bottom, and he looked around and noticed they were in a large, dusty basement. He glanced around behind him and caught sight of Ian's coffin resting just behind the stairs. There sitting on top of it was Ian. Ian smiled and rose from the coffin.

"Doctor," he said.

"Ian! How are ya, ya bloodsucking bastard? Been a long time! How's the wife and kiddies?" the Doctor said.

He paused.

"So, have to ask ya since we're now that we're face to face. Why Ian? Why not Lestat or Bloodrein or Moondroppings or some other Goth name like that?"

Ian chuckled.

"I am not pretentious, Doctor. I know vampires who have renamed themselves with silly names like that, but I prefer my own name. I happen to like it."

The Doctor shrugged.

"Fair enough," he said.

He glanced at Rose and noticed she was still in a trance.

"So, what happens to her then? Are you gonna release her now that we can see each other face to face?" he said.

Ian stared at Rose who was staring back at him blankly.

"Depends, Doctor."

"On what?"

Ian looked at him.

"Depends on if you're thinking of escape. Because if you are, I'm going to keep her under my thrall to keep you in line. However, if you and she decide to accept your fates, I will release her mind, so she can see what's going on."

The Doctor sighed.

"We won't try to escape," he said.

"Is that a promise, Doctor, or are you just saying that so I'll release my hold on Rose?" Ian said.

"No, I promise we won't escape. You win."

Ian studied his face for a moment before nodding. He closed his eyes, and Rose let out a gasp when he withdrew from his mind. The Doctor quickly took her hand, and she looked up at him.

"Doctor?"

"It's okay, Rose," he said. "Ian's let go of your mind and you and I are in his…"

He looked around the basement.

"Lair, if you can call it that," he said.

He looked at Ian.

"Seriously, why would a vampire want to live in a rotting house in the middle of London? Wouldn't you like to live somewhere a little more exotic; say, Transylvania?"

"That's been done to death!" Ian said. "London is much more interesting. Besides, Transylvania is full of superstitious people who still believe in the undead. Londoners, for the most part, think vampires are a load of rubbish so it's easy to get a meal without worrying about getting a stake through the heart. Not to mention the fact that most of the undead don't think of setting up shop here, so there isn't much competition for food."

He smiled at them.

"Of course, after tonight, there will be two new immortals, but we will be working together, not in competition."

"How do you know? Maybe after we become vampires, Rose and I will want to get a home of our own," the Doctor said.

Ian chuckled.

"I doubt that. I think Rose will prefer to stay here. Won't you my dear?"

Rose backed up closer to the Doctor, when Ian tried to stroke her cheek. The Doctor put a hand on her shoulder.

"Not a chance in Hell," she said.

Ian smiled.

"I think you'll change your mind about that," he said.

He closed his eyes, and the Doctor gasped when Rose got a glazed look in her eyes and began to walk towards him.

"Damn you!" he said.

The Doctor started walking towards Ian.

"Ah, ah, I warn you, Doctor. I can make Rose suffer again, and I'm sure you don't want that." Ian said.

The Doctor stopped in his tracks and glared at him while Ian embraced Rose.

"There, she's much more agreeable, don't you think?"

"So, this is going to be Rose's fate then?" the Doctor said. "Spend eternity as your puppet?"

"Oh no, once I convert her and you; you won't ever want to leave," Ian said.

He looked down at her and stroked her cheek.

"She's so beautiful, Doctor. I can see why you love her so much. Of course, her beauty will be enhanced once she's immortal, as will yours."

The Doctor watched in disgust while Ian lowered her mouth to Rose's and kissed her passionately. Seizing on the distraction, he reached into his pocket and slowly brought out his sonic screwdriver. Keeping his eye on Ian, he slowly raised it towards him. He aimed it at his head and gasped when suddenly with lightning quick speed; Rose broke out of the embrace, snatched the screwdriver from his hand, and handed it to Ian.

"Thought you might try something with your little toy," he said. "I see you'll have to be secured until after your conversion.

The Doctor gasped when Ian moved swifter than thought and grabbed him around the neck. The Doctor grunted as Ian lifted him off his feet and held him aloft.

"You'll never get away with this," the Doctor said. "I'll stop you somehow."

Ian smirked at him.

"Try to stop me when you're out cold then, Doctor."

He flung him as hard as he could and watched as the Doctor smacked against the back wall and fell to the ground, unconscious.

"There, that's better," he said.

He looked over at Rose who was standing beside him. She had remained impassive through the whole thing. He stroked her cheek.

"Come, my bride, let's get the Doctor tied up so the blood ritual can begin."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

The Doctor groaned and slowly opened his eyes.

"Note to self," he said. "Next time you try to use your sonic screwdriver on a vampire, throw a bag of garlic in his face first."

He winced at his throbbing head and tried to raise his hand to rub the back of his head. He sighed when he couldn't and looked down to see that he was tied up and sitting on the floor of the basement. He looked down at the rope tied around his legs and ankles.

"Wonderful," he said.

He looked around and noticed Rose was sitting by herself on top of Ian's coffin. She had a flowing white gown on and was staring at the wall impassively.

"Rose. Rose!"

He got no response from her.

"Bollocks!"

He glanced all around hoping to see his sonic screwdriver and let out a curse when he couldn't find it. Gritting his teeth, he tried to pull his legs apart hoping that the ropes were old enough that he could snap them. He let out a frustrated sigh when they held fast.

"Okay, Doctor, time to use the old noggin," he said. "You're tied up in a rotting basement without your sonic screwdriver and Rose is in a trance. What do you do?"

He stared at Rose while he tried to formulate a plot. He had no idea where Ian had gone, but he was sure he wouldn't be absent for long. He took a breath and began to talk to himself.

"Let's see…what are my options right now?" he said. "Rose is under his spell and so far she hasn't been able to break free like she did earlier, so I'm betting the closer in proximity she is to him, the stronger the hold. If I can get her away from him, maybe she would have the strength to fight."

He stared down at the ropes binding his legs.

"Of course, I have to get these buggers off of me first. No sonic screwdriver to burn through them, and Rose isn't any help so what to do?"

He butted his head back against the wall gently.

"Think, think, think. Come on, Doctor. You don't want to end up a vampire, do you?"

He paused, and his eyes widened as he suddenly thought of something.

"Wait a moment," he said. "Why didn't I think of it before? That's exactly what I'll do! I'll become a vampire and beat Ian at his own game."

He looked at Rose.

"Rose! There's hope for us yet!"

She made no response.

"Rose, I know some part of you can still hear and understand me. Just hold on and have faith in your Doctor. I'll get us out of this, I promise."

She said nothing, but deep down inside the Doctor knew she understood him, and he took comfort in that.

He jerked his head up towards the top of the stairs when he heard a woman's shrill scream echoing down to him. He gritted his teeth and stared at Ian, enraged, when he saw him coming down the stairs dragging a screaming woman with him.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. I needed to feed before we started the ritual, and I brought along a meal for you," he said. "I figure after this is all over, you'll be hungry."

The Doctor fought to restrain himself while he looked into the terrified woman's eyes. It wasn't bad enough that he and Rose were caught up in all this, now he had to pull an innocent woman into it with them.

"Let her go, Ian," he said. "We don't need her!"

"On the contrary, you'll want her after your conversion. You see, Rose is going to go first and after she's converted, I will let her drain you before I convert you and by the time you wake up, you'll be feeling awfully peckish, Doctor, trust me."

He sighed and rolled his eyes, as the woman screamed at him and tried to wiggle out of his grasp.

"I'm not putting up with this in the meantime," he said.

The Doctor's stared at him in horror when he saw Ian picked the woman up and throw her against the basement wall.

"No!"

He yelled when the woman let out a grunt and fell like a stone to the basement floor.

"There, that's better," Ian, said. "Less noise in here now."

The Doctor looked the woman over, as she lay unconscious beside him. Satisfied that she was still alive, he turned his attention back to Ian who was slowly walking towards Rose. He stroked her cheek.

"I see my bride has been behaving herself while I was gone," he said." Good. I would have hated to punish her again. It's a shame to see such a beautiful creature writhing in pain."

He smiled at the Doctor who was staring at him, enraged. Ignoring the look of death he was giving him, Ian turned back to Rose.

"Stand."

Rose stood up. She made no movement while Ian ran his hand through her hair.

"She's such a lovely vision in this frock, don't you think, Doctor?" he said. "I picked it out just for her. I knew she would look gorgeous in it."

He glanced over at the Doctor.

"I didn't pick out anything for you, because I actually like your choice of outfit," he said. "You look handsome in that suit and trench coat."

His eyes filled with lust.

"You'll look far handsomer without it on though, I'm sure."

Ignoring the Doctor's loud snort, he turned his attention back to Rose. He smiled and ran his hand down her cheek.

"Almost two centuries, Doctor," he said. "That's how long I've been alone, and in all that time I've hungered for someone to share my lonely nights with."

He glanced at the Doctor.

"Ah, but you, Doctor, you've been alone for far longer, haven't you?"

He nodded to himself when the Doctor said nothing and turned his attention back to Rose.

"Yes, you know what it's like to be alone. To spend all your life searching for that special someone who will make your life complete."

He smiled and ran his finger down Rose's jugular vein.

"And you finally found someone, didn't you, Doctor? A beautiful, little girl that fell in love with you and brought meaning to your empty existence. Suddenly, there she was shining a bright light into the darkness of your soul and even though you knew it was foolish you fell head over heels in love with her, and she became your everything."

He glanced back at the Doctor.

"Didn't she? She is your sweet, innocent angel. A selfless little saint who took a damaged, beaten, broken-down alien and restored him."

He looked back at Rose.

"Shame that such a lovely creature has a very limited time on this Earth though. It must make you ache inside, Doctor, to know that one day her life will end, and all the color and warmth will fade from this soft, milky white, skin. And then this little goddess, who loves you so completely, will be laid in the cold, hard ground where her beauty will be hidden and slowly rot away."

He glanced back around and saw the anguish in the Doctor's eyes, as he stared at Rose.

"Yes, Doctor, it will be painful when that day finally does come," Ian said. "The day when you hold Rose in your arms and she breathes her last breath will be the day your world ends, won't it? Because that's what she is now. Your whole world."

He looked back at Rose and stroked her side.

"I wonder Doctor, will you be able to keep her with you until the very end, or will you let her go as you did all the others to avoid the pain of seeing your true love wither and die in front of your eyes?"

He stayed silent for a moment and stared at Rose.

"I can help you, Doctor," he said. "I can give your beloved angel immortality. I can stop death in its tracks and keep her forever young."

He looked at him and smiled.

"That is my gift to you, Doctor. Because I sense a kindred spirit. A lonely wanderer who longs for someone to shares his adventures with him for all eternity. That is what I will give to you after tonight. Your beloved will never die. She will never age and you and she can be together forever."

"As your slaves."

Ian sighed.

"No, Doctor, not as my slaves. If I wanted you to be my slaves, I wouldn't convert you. I would simply hypnotize you into mindless zombies. We do not choose just anyone to become immortal, Doctor. Only the best and the beautiful are given that precious gift. That is why you are here along with Rose. Originally, I was going to have her kill you and that would be that. But once I saw you and saw into Rose's memories, I realized how unique you are and how much of a credit you would be to the immortal race."

"What if I don't want your "gift?"" the Doctor said "What if I'm happy with Rose being just the way she is?"

"You want her to grow old and die?"

"Yes! I want her to grow old and die! You're right about everything, Ian. Rose is my life, my angel and my hearts will break into the day she dies. But, I'd rather she did die than live forever as a bloodsucking monster preying off innocent people!"

Ian's face twisted in rage, as he walked over to the Doctor.

"Is that what you see when you look at me, Doctor? A monster? If I am a monster, than what does that make you? You destroyed your own people, your own planet. That's more than I've ever done."

"Damn you for saying that."

"Well? It's the truth, Doctor. You're as much a murderer as I am. More so, since you've killed far more people than me. I and other immortals take what we need to exist, Doctor, no more, no less. We don't kill just for the fun of it."

"I don't either."

Ian stared at him.

"No, you don't. You're right, Doctor. You kill only when you need to, just as I do. I'm sorry for saying what I did, but I get so tired of mortals negative perception of my kind. We are not monsters, Doctor. We are living beings and deserve our place in the universe just as much as you and Rose do."

"Then let Rose and I exist in our place in the universe," the Doctor said. "We don't want to be vampires. We don't want this so called gift of yours. Go find someone who is willing and convert them. Let us go."

Ian ran his finger down his cheek.

"I'm sorry, Doctor, I can't do that. Just like you, I have searched all my undead life for the right person or persons to share my life with and now that I've found them I won't let them go. Believe me, everyone is fearful of the change, but once they become immortal and see what it's truly like, they quickly change their minds. You and Rose will be no different."

"Then, if there is no choice for us. I have one last request," the Doctor said.

"Yes, Doctor."

The Doctor looked into his eyes.

"Let me go first."


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen

Ian gave him a wary look.

"Why?"

"Because I want to go first. I want to be the one to convert Rose. I want to make sure she feels no pain during it."

"I won't cause her any pain," Ian said. "No one feels any pain when I do it. I'm careful, Doctor. I've had almost two hundred years experience. I think I know what I'm doing."

"Nevertheless, I want to be the one to do it. She is my lover, not yours and if she's going to die and be reborn, I want her to be in my arms when it happens."

He leaned forward and looked him in the eyes.

"Besides, don't you want to taste my blood for yourself?" he said. "Alien blood, you know, aren't you curious about the flavor?"

He smirked when he saw the look of hunger on Ian's face.

"Come on, Ian. Take a taste of the old Time Lord and sample a time traveler," he said. "I'm sure it'll be an experience you won't forget."

Ian nodded.

"Yes, I want you, Doctor. I want your blood," he said. "I will give you Rose in exchange for that honor."

The Doctor smiled.

"Tuck in then," he said.

Ian paused and stared at him suspiciously, as the Doctor laid his head to the side and exposed his jugular vein.

"Well, what ya waiting for? Get to it!" the Doctor said.

"I'm just curious about this sudden change of heart, Doctor. Why are you so eager for me to convert you now? What are you planning?"

"What do you mean, what am I planning? I'm not planning anything, Ian. I'm tied up with nowhere to go, and you have a grip on Rose's mind. I'm not a patient person. I never have been. I'm tired of sitting here on this hard, cold floor listening to you go on and on. If my destiny is to become a vampire, then get on with it!"

Ian stared at him a moment more and then looked back over his shoulder.

"Rose, come here."

The Doctor looked at Rose who was walking towards them. Panic gripped his hearts.

"What are you doing now?" he said.

"I want Rose to witness this. I want her to see what it'll be like when you take her," he said.

Rose stopped behind him and stood motionless.

"No! Please, let her alone," the Doctor said. "Normally, I would ask you to release your hold on her mind, but not now. I don't want her to see us."

"Kneel."

Rose obeyed without question.

He turned back at the Doctor who was staring at him with hate.

"You bastard. You're doing this to torture us, aren't you?"

"Not at all. The blood ritual is a beautiful thing, Doctor. Besides, Rose should be a witness to your rebirth."

The Doctor's hearts stopped when he saw Ian close his eyes. He felt his hearts sink when Rose blinked her eyes and stared around confused.

"Doctor?"

"Rose! Run away! Get away from here now!"

Ian chuckled.

"She can't move, Doctor. I only withdrew from part of her mind. I'm still controlling her movements."

"What are you doing to the Doctor?" Rose said.

"He is going to go first."

Rose frowned at him. She mouthed, "Go where?" Then, her eyes widened and the Doctor's hearts sank as he watched realization set in.

"NO! You can't do this!" she said. "Don't hurt him. Take me instead!"

The Doctor's eyes shone with love.

Ian chuckled.

"How noble of you, my dear, but the Doctor volunteered to go first so I'm afraid you'll just have to wait your turn."

Ian lowered himself to the Doctor's neck. The Doctor kept his eyes on Rose and saw she was straining to get up off the floor and get to him.

"Doctor."

The Doctor gave her a loving smile.

"It's alright, Rose. I'll be fine, trust me," he said.

He winced when he felt Ian sink his fangs into his neck and then felt that area go numb as Ian began to feed.

"Oh God…" Rose said.

The Doctor gave her a brave smile.

"It doesn't hurt, Rose," he said. "Once I become a vampire, I'm going to be the one to convert you, so you have nothing to be afraid of."

Rose felt the tears began to fall, as she saw the Doctor began to weaken, and his eyelids begin to droop.

"I…love…you…Rose. Soon…it'll…all…be…over…and…we'll…be…together."

"Doctor, I love you too," Rose said.

She wept quietly when she saw the Doctor's breathing become more and more erratic. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity to her, Ian finally stopped and leaned back up.

"You monster!" Rose said.

Ian looked back at her.

"I don't understand why everyone calls me a monster."

"Because you are! You killed him!"

"No, I didn't. It's true he's barely alive at this point, and if I let him alone, he would die, but I'm about to give him life, Rose. A life fuller than any he's ever had."

Turning from her, he ignored her and brought his wrist to his mouth. He bit down hard on his vein. Turning his bloodied wrist over, he brought it down on top of the Doctor's mouth. He smiled, as the blood dripped into his mouth.

"Drink, my Doctor. Live forever!"

"No, Doctor! Don't swallow! Spit it out!"

Ian smiled, and he watched the Doctor's Adam's apple bob up and down as he drank the blood.

"It's too late, my dear. He's already feeding on me."

Ignoring Rose's anguished wail, he pulled his wrist away and shifted his body, so Rose could see.

"Behold, my bride. The Doctor is becoming an immortal!" he said.

Rose shook her head in disbelief while she watched the Doctor's breathing become more and more erratic and finally cease

"Doctor, no."

After a moment, the Doctor opened his eyes and looked around.

"Hello."

"Hello, my immortal lover," Ian said. "Welcome to your new life."

The Doctor smiled. He rose slightly and met Ian's lips in a kiss while Rose sobbed. They stayed that way for a moment and then broke apart.

"I feel incredible. You're right. This is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I feel like I can do anything."

"I'm glad to hear you say that, my love," Ian said.

He untied the Doctor and looked over at Rose.

"And now, why don't you show Rose how wonderful being undead really is?"

The Doctor smiled and sat up.

"No, Doctor, don't do this."

"But Rose, there's nothing to be afraid of," the Doctor said. "I've never felt more alive in my life and now we can be together for all eternity."

Rose wept when he laid a hand against her cheek.

"I'll be gentle, I promise," he said. "I know instinctively what to do. You'll be safe with me."

He kissed her forehead.

"Trust me, Rose. You do trust me, don't you?"

Rose bit her lip and nodded.

The Doctor laid his head against her forehead.

"Good, I'm glad you trust me because you know what?" he said.

Rose swallowed the lump in her throat.

"W…what?"

The Doctor looked into her eyes and grinned.

"I'm not under Ian's control, and the sorry bastard is about to pay for what he's done."


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen

Ian did a double take.

"What?" he said.

The Doctor gave him a triumphant grin.

"That's right, Ian, I'm not your willing love slave. Sorry."

"But I gave you my blood. You should be converted."

"Oh, I am," the Doctor said opening his mouth and showing him his elongated canines. "But there is one essential fact about me that you didn't know about. You see, the whole spiel you were making about us being alike is very true. It turns out that my people's DNA is 98 percent compatible with vampire DNA. Rassilon, who is considered the god on my planet, defeated the Great Vampire back in the beginnings of the universe, but not before he was bitten and changed into a vampire himself. He created the rest of us and wouldn't you know it, we're cousins! So, that combined with the fact that I have a superior mind that far surpasses any human makes me resistant to vampire control."

"So, why did you let me do the blood ritual?"

"Oh, well, the problem is I'm only 98 percent compatible. I'm missing the 2 percent that comprises a vampire's powers such as super strength and speed. Your conversion supplied me with that missing 2 percent which means I can do everything you can do while keeping my identity intact."

Ian gasped when the Doctor snatched him by the throat. He stood up and held Ian aloft in his hand.

"Congratulations, Ian, you just enhanced my natural abilities ten fold and leveled the playing field between us. So…WELCOME TO HELL, VAMP BOY! THE ASS WHOOPIN' IS ON!"

Ian yelled when the Doctor flung him across the room. He smacked against the wall so hard he made a dent and, with a groan, fell forward on his face.

"Rassilon, that felt good!"

He reached down, picked up the unconscious woman, and put her over his shoulder. He bent down to pick up Rose.

"Doctor? She said.

"Yes, Rose?"

"Is…is…it true? Are you really a vampire now?"

"Yes, I am."

He saw the anguish in her eyes and stroked her cheek.

"But…I know a way to become mortal again."

"You do?"

"Course I do. I wouldn't have allowed myself to be converted, if there wasn't a way out of it." He said. "I love food too much to spend the rest of my life living off blood."

He looked over and saw Ian was slowly getting up.

"Now hurry, Rose, put your arms around my neck. I gotta get you and this woman to safety."

"But I can't move."

"Yes, you can. When he was knocked out, his hold over you was broken."

Rose tested her arm and saw that it moved freely. She smiled and flung her arms around the Doctor's neck. He wrapped an arm around her back and held her tight as he stood up.

"Hang on, Rose," the Doctor said. "I'm still getting the hang of my new abilities."

He looked over at Ian who was nearly to his feet. He winked at him.

"Catch us if you can," he said.

Rose gasped when the Doctor tightened his hold on her and jumped up the stairs. Her eyes widened when he cleared the twenty steps in one huge leap and landed nimbly on his feet.

"Wow, I could get used to this," he said.

He grinned down at Ian who was now at the bottom of the stairs.

"What's wrong, Ian? Don't like the new improved me?"

"I will kill you, Doctor. I will kill all of you," he said.

The Doctor pouted.

"Aw, lover's tiff so soon? That doesn't bode well for our relationship."

He smirked when he heard Ian roar with rage and leap up the stairs toward them. He quickly calculated his trajectory and speed and waited until he was almost upon him before he raised his foot and kicked him hard in the chest, sending him back down the stairs.

"Get back down there, vampy boy!" he said.

Ian smacked into the wall at the bottom of the stairs. He looked over at Rose.

"This is brilliant. Maybe I'll stay a vampire after all. I can just imagine myself kicking an army of Daleks out of my way."

He paused for a moment.

"Nah, still isn't worth it trading my mortality for an insatiable blood lust," he said.

"Doctor!"

The Doctor looked down and saw Ian was about to leap up the stairs again.

"Hmmm, maybe it's time to take this battle outdoors," he said.

He tightened his grip around Rose.

"Hang on, Rose. I'm gonna go really fast," he said.

Rose gasped when the Doctor took off running through the house and reached the front door before she could blink.

"Yup, there are definite advantages to being a vampire," he said.

He flung open the door and ran down the stairs to the street. He turned to see Ian was at the door.

"You think you're so clever, Doctor," Ian said.

"I am clever, actually," the Doctor said. "I figured out a way to beat you at your own game and I kept my individuality. Go me!"

He smirked.

"And now the one new skill I've been…dying to try out."

He let out an insane giggle and began to imitate Ian.

"Oooo, I said dying to try out. How droll. I just made a witty little pun. Aren't I fantastic?"

Ian snarled at him.

"Ah, what's wrong? Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, you know."

"I will pull your hearts from your chest and stuff them down your throat!" Ian yelled.

"Ooo, nasty and a bit messy, I'll pass."

He sped backwards a couple of meters, as Ian made a grab for him.

"Hold on tight, Rose," the Doctor said.

Rose looked at him.

"Why?"

He grinned at her.

"'Cause I'm gonna do THIS!"

Rose screamed when the Doctor leapt into the air and became airborne. Rose threw her arms around his neck in a death grip. The Doctor winced at the pressure on his throat.

"Boy, it's a good thing I'm not breathing at the moment."

Rose relaxed her hold slightly and looked down at Ian who was following close behind. She looked at the Doctor.

"Why hasn't he done anything to me?" she said.

The Doctor glanced down while he flew horizontally, and saw Ian was closing the distance between him.

"I caught him off guard when I kicked him and I think he's been too preoccupied with killing us to concentrate on your mind right now," he said. "I need to keep him occupied so he won't take that advantage."

He looked back down and saw they were flying over an office building.

"I'm gonna set you and this woman on the top of this building, Rose, so I can have my hands free to fight. As soon as I touch ground, let go and grab the woman when I lift her off my shoulders. I think she's okay for now, but she'll probably need medical attention."

Rose nodded. She hung on tightly while the Doctor lowered himself to the roof. When he landed, she quickly let go and helped the woman off the Doctor's shoulder. When she was lying safe on the roof, the Doctor looked up at Ian who was quickly lowering himself to the roof.

"Here goes nothing," he said.

"Be careful, Doctor," Rose said.

The Doctor managed one quick smile at her before he jumped into the air and sped towards Ian. Rose knelt beside the woman and watched as the two men connected mid air and began to pummel each other with their fists. She winced when Ian finally got in a strong enough punch and knocked the Doctor back towards the roof.

"Doctor!" Rose said.

The Doctor stopped himself moments before he connected with the roof. He craned his neck back and looked at her.

"Yeah?"

Rose rolled her eyes.

"Never mind," she said. "Thought you were gonna hit the roof for a moment."

"Me? Never!" Him, on the other hand…"

He quickly righted himself and pushed off again. Ian tried to dodge, but the Doctor anticipated his movement and landed a haymaker on his jaw. The force of the blow sent Ian flying backwards and the Doctor stood in mid-air with his hands in his pockets watching him.

"Ooops, on second thought, I guess he's gonna miss the roof," he said. "Maybe he'll hit Mars instead."

Ian finally managed to stop himself, turned himself head first toward the Doctor and dive-bombed him.

"Drat, didn't make Mars. Guess I'll have to try harder next time."

Rose's eyes widened. She watched the Doctor stand perfectly still while Ian came at him at top speed.

"Doctor!"

"I know, Rose, I see him!"

He waited a moment more and then at the last minute flew upwards into the sky. He turned around and grinned when Ian's momentum carried him into one of the office building's windows. His grin widened when he crashed through the window and smacked head first into a desk with an enormous 'BANG'.

"Ow, that had to have hurt even for a dead person," he said.

As Ian groaned and tried to get up from the middle of the destroyed desk, the Doctor quickly flew down to Rose and the woman. He picked the woman up and quickly slung her over his shoulder.

"Hop on again, Rose. While he's recovering, I'm gonna move you to safety and then I'm gonna amp things up significantly."

A/N: I am basing some of the vampire stuff and the Doctor's conversion on what occurred in the Doctor Who Missing Adventure, Goth Opera, where Five and Nyssa became vampires for a while. It is a very good novel, if you are able to find it.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen

The Doctor touched down in front of a hospital. Rose let go and followed him as he walked into the emergency room entrance.

"This woman needs medical attention!" he said.

Two nurses wheeled a gurney up to him and he laid her on it.

"Are you relatives?" one of the nurses said.

The Doctor shook his head.

"No, we found her lying out on the street and brought her in here," he said.

The nurse shook her head.

"Do you know what happened to her?"

The Doctor glanced at Rose.

"Um…no, I have no idea," he said.

The nurse nodded.

"Take her to room three," she said to the other nurse.

The nurse took the gurney and wheeled it off to a nearby exam room.

"Thank you for bringing her in. We'll take care of her," the other nurse said to them.

The Doctor smiled and nodded. He waited until the nurse went back behind the desk before turning Rose towards him and putting his hands on her shoulders.

"Stay here, Rose, where you'll be safe."

"No way."

The Doctor sighed.

"Rose—"

"Doctor, this is just as much my fight as it is yours. I'm going to help you."

The Doctor folded his arms over his chest.

"How?" he said. "Ian is a powerful vampire with abilities far beyond any mortal, not to mention the fact that he still has a hold on your mind. He will be able to take control of your mind before you get within ten feet of him. So how are you going to do it?"

"Change me."

"Change you?"

"Yes, make me a vampire, so I can fight alongside you."

"Rose, be sensible."

"I am being sensible. You allowed Ian to change you into a vampire, so you could fight him, and you told me you have a way to change yourself back to a mortal, so do the same to me."

The Doctor looked around and pulled Rose into the corner. He leaned down and lowered his voice.

"This won't work, Rose," he said. "I can't turn you into a vampire."

"Why not?"

"Because, in order to become mortal, you have to kill the vampire that changed you and do it before the next full moon. If I change you…"

Rose's eyes widened in understanding.

The Doctor nodded.

"So you see, Rose. The only way you could become a vampire safely is if Ian turns you, and I'm not about to do that."

"But I want to help you."

"Rose, you can help me by staying here and staying out of harm's way," the Doctor said. "I'll be able to concentrate on defeating Ian if I know you're safe."

The Doctor's eyes widened in shock when Rose suddenly turned and stomped away from him.

"Rose…" he said starting after her.

"Leave me alone."

"Rose."

He took a hold of her shoulder.

"Rose, please, don't be angry at me," he said.

Rose turned around and put her hands on her hips.

"When are you gonna stop treating me like a child and let me be a part of the team?" she said.

The Doctor let out an exasperated sigh.

"You are a part of the team, Rose," he said. "If you weren't, you wouldn't be here."

"Then let me help fight Ian."

"Rose, it's too dangerous!" the Doctor said through gritted teeth. "I care about you more than anything, and I will not see you get hurt!"

"What about me? I care about you more than anything, and I don't wanna see you get hurt either!"

The Doctor ran his hand through his hair in frustration.

"I don't have time for this now, I really don't," he muttered as he headed for the front entrance. "I have a vampire to stop, and I'm not going to waste valuable time arguing with you. If you feel you're not a team player then you can stay with your mum when all this is sorted out."

He looked back when Rose gripped his arm.

"Doctor, don't be angry. I just want to help, okay?" she said. "I don't understand why you don't have faith in me. I've never let you down. I've fought the Daleks, the Slitheen, The Cybermen and a ton of other monsters and I've come out of it alright. I'm not weak, Doctor."

"I never said you were, Rose."

"Then why do you constantly try to put me on the sidelines?"

She gasped when the Doctor seized her arms and stared at her with an intense look in his eyes.

"Because, Rose, I care about you more than life itself, and I'm scared half out of my mind I'm gonna lose you!" he said. "I've lost too many people in my life, and I'm sick of going through the pain and the grief. Every time we step onto a planet, I'm taking a risk that you might get hurt or killed. I play Russian Roulette with your life every time we go somewhere."

"No, Doctor, it's me who is risking my life," Rose said. "I love what we do. I love being with you and I want to help you defeat bad guys and save the universe. I can't do that if I'm stuck in a hospital. There are a lot of things I can do to help you, if you'd just trust me."

The Doctor sighed.

"Please, Doctor, please trust me."

"And what happens if he takes control of your mind and turns you against me?" he said. "I don't think my trust in you will do much good when I'm trying to fight both you and him at the same time."

"Well, you're a vampire now. Can't you do something about that?"

The Doctor paused. His eyes widened as realization hit him.

"Of course," he said. "I'm more powerful than he is now. I can just block your mind and prevent him from accessing it. Why didn't I think of that be…"

He paused when Rose folded her arms across her chest and raised her eyebrow.

"Okay, I admit it, you do help me out a lot," he said.

"Oooo; that must have been really hard for you to say," Rose said.

She giggled as the Doctor eyed her. He looked out the front entrance and back at Rose.

"Alright, you can help me, but you will follow my orders. If I tell you to fall back, you will do that, is that clear?"

"Crystal."

The Doctor nodded. He put his fingertips on her temple.

"I hope this works, he said closing his eyes. "If I'm wrong, I'm pretty sure he won't hesitate to send you after me."

He opened one eye.

"Rose, if this does fail and he makes you fight me; are you prepared to accept that risk? Because if I'm forced to knock you out to get to him, I will."

"I accept that risk."

The Doctor nodded and closed his eye. He took a deep breath and concentrated. Rose stood quietly and waited for him to finish. After a moment, the Doctor opened his eyes.

"Okay, I think that's done it," he said. "I can't be sure though. Never done anything like this."

He put his hands on her shoulders.

"Stay back out sight," he said. "Don't let him see you unless it's absolutely necessary. I'll try to keep him busy so he won't have time to think of you and if he sees you he might try to take over your mind. As I said, I'm not sure if I was successful with the mind block so I'd rather not take any chances. Okay?"

Rose nodded.

The Doctor sighed. Taking her hand in his, he gave it a squeeze before walking out the door.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter Seventeen

"Right," the Doctor said, as he landed with a thump on an office building. "I think this is a good place to make a stand. It's early in the morning and most people are asleep now so I don't think there's a chance anyone will get hurt."

"Except us."

The Doctor looked at Rose.

"Sure you wanna do this, Rose?" he asked. "I can take you back—"

Rose held up her hand.

"I said I'm in it with ya, and I mean that," she said.

The Doctor shrugged.

"Okay," he said slapping his hands together. "How do we lure the little bugger to us?"

The Doctor nearly jumped out of his Converses When Rose screamed out, "HEEEEEEEEEEEEEY, WE'RE OVER HEEEEEEEEEEEEEERE!" behind him.

"Um…Rose?"

"Yeah?" Rose said turning around.

"I don't know if you know this or not; but vampires have extremely sensitive hearing and thanks to you, I have a tremendous headache now."

"Sorry."

"Besides, I doubt if that wor…"

He looked behind Rose, and his eyes widened.

"On second though, here he comes," he said. "Hide now!"

Rose looked around and noticed a shadowy area in the far corner of the building. She ran to it and crouched down low. The Doctor nodded, satisfied that she could not be easily detected and turned his attention to his adversary who was fast approaching the building.

"Evening," the Doctor said. "Nice night for flying. The air is unseasonably warm this time of year."

He stuffed his hands in his pockets, rocked back, and forth, as Ian landed in front of him.

"Very cute, Doctor. You won't think it so funny when I rip your head off your body."

He glanced around.

"So, where's Rose?" he asked him.

"Dunno."

Ian raised his eyebrow.

"Don't give me that. I heard your little lover screaming at the top of her lungs a moment ago."

"Oh! That! That was me," the Doctor said proudly.

"You?"

"Yeah, I'm great at mimicry. And what better way to lure you over here than to imitate your future bride. And what'd you know, your need to do the mattress mambo with my Rose led you right into my trap. Oh my! This must just be so embarrassing for you, eh? A man who has only been a vampire for a couple of hours outwitting a 200-year-old bloodsucker. Guess it's something to tell the boys at the office, huh?"

He scratched his ear.

"Come to think of it, do we even have an office?" the Doctor asked. "I mean, do we all get up at the crack of dusk, report to our workplace to punch in and get our schedules; and then after a hard day's night, we all gather around the plasma cooler and swap amusing anecdotes?"

"You think you're cute, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do, actually. Well, at least, Rose says I am. I'm not a judge of beauty by any means, but she seems to prefer this body over the last one. Of course, the last body had these enormous ears that put elephants in Africa to shame, but on the plus side, it did provide lots of shade for Rose wherever we went and…"

"ENOUGH!"

The Doctor frowned.

"What? I'm answering your question," he said. "I'm only trying to answer your question. I'm just being polite and I…"

The Doctor ducked out of the way, as Ian leaped at him.

"Enough talking, let the battle begin!" he screamed.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter Eighteen

"Oh no, that was just rude," the Doctor said. "No one interrupts me when I'm talking. Even Rose knows that."

He dodged, as Ian made a grab for him.

"I will kill you, Doctor," Ian said. "And then I will convert Rose and enslave and torment her for all eternity while you watch helpless from the afterlife."

"Are you sure I'll be helpless?" the Doctor said. "I mean did you see Ghost with Patrick Swayze? He was dead and he still managed to protect his girl. How do you know I won't be able to do the same? You don't, do ya? Yeah, because you've never been officially dead, so you don't know what it's like and…"

He ducked when Ian flew at him. He grabbed his leg, as he went past and hurled him across the roof.

"I said don't interrupt me! Why is it I have to keep repeating everything to stupid apes like you? Do you even listen-?"

Ian roared and flew at him. The Doctor fell onto his back and when Ian was over him, he raised his leg and kicked him in the gut. He leapt back up, as Ian grunted and stopped himself in mid-air. He glared at the Doctor who was giving him a smug look.

"Something wrong, vampy poo?" he said. "Am I winning, is that it? Is that the reason for the sour face?"

Ian floated to the ground. He regarded the Doctor for a moment and then with a smirk closed his eyes.

"Oh, are we playing hide and seek then?" the Doctor asked.

"No, Doctor, I am calling your pet to me."

"Oh, well, about that whole mind control thing. I think you'll find that I've taken care of that now. I…"

The Doctor trailed off when he saw Rose rise from her corner and start slowly towards Ian.

"Oh no," he said softly. "No, no, no."

His hearts sank when Ian opened his eyes and saw Rose staring up at him.

"Hello, my dear. I'm glad you could join us," he said running a finger down her cheek.

He smirked at the Doctor.

"I knew your little girlfriend was hiding in the corner, Doctor. Do you think I'm so blind that I can't make out a human figure crouching in the shadows?"

"Let her go, Ian. This is between us."

"Oh no, Doctor, not while I have the advantage. You see, I can send Rose after you, and you won't stop her. Not without hurting her anyway."

"You coward!"

"Just like you, Doctor, I seize every advantage I can get," Ian said.

He looked at Rose.

"And now my dear, I have something for you," he said pulling a small, wooden stake out from under his coat. "You know what to do with it."

"No, Rose, don't!"

Rose took the stake from Ian and turned towards the Doctor. The Doctor started to rise into the air when he noticed Rose winking at him. His eyes widened in understanding, and he let his shoulders droop.

"You're right, Ian. I won't fight Rose. You win," he said.

He glanced at Ian and saw that he was frowning at him in confusion.

"You're giving up so easily? There's something wrong here. Rose, turn around," Ian said.

Rose stared at the Doctor and smiled at him. Raising the stake, she turned around quickly and with one swift motion plunged it into Ian's chest.

"Oh yes!" The Doctor said. "Well done, Rose!"

"See, I told ya, I could help," she said, as the Doctor laid a hand on her shoulder.

They both looked over at Ian who was laughing hysterically.

"Little fool!" he said. "It only works if you pierce the heart, and you missed it."

He pulled the stake out of his chest and flung it out of reach. He looked down and smiled when the gaping hole in his chest closed up.

"Nice try, Rose, now it's my turn," he said.

The Doctor yelled as he punched Rose in the jaw. He caught her when she sailed back into him and stared down at her unconscious body.

"YOU BASTARD!" he said.

"I'm impressed, Doctor," Ian said as the Doctor cradled Rose in his arms. "I was hoping you wouldn't think to block her mind from me. You're smarter than I thought."

He smirked.

"Let's see if your smarts will be enough to save you from me," he said.

The Doctor flew backward when Ian took a swing at him. He quickly laid Rose on the ground and balled up his fists.

"Alright, no more mister nice Time Lord!" he said. "It ends here and now!"

Ian grinned.

"Come on, Doctor, show me what you got!" he said.

With a roar of rage, the Doctor flew towards him. Ian fell on his back and kicked him directly in the face.

"That's for kicking me in the stomach!" he said.

The Doctor let out a grunt and hit the roof. He shook his head and quickly rolled out of the way when Ian dove for him. Jumping to his feet, he sailed up in the air. Ian gritted his teeth and followed him. The Doctor glanced over at Rose.

"Got to get him away from her," he muttered.

He turned and headed away from the office building at full speed. As he flew over London, he looked back, and saw Ian was following close behind him. Looking down, he saw he was flying over a park.

"Aha, cover," he muttered.

He angled himself down into the trees and flew through them looking for a hiding place. He found a large limb partially hidden in the treetops and flew up to it. Perching on the limb, he hunkered down and receded into the shadows watching Ian, as he flew in and out of the trees looking for him.

"You can't escape, Doctor," Ian said. "I know you're in here somewhere and sooner or later I'll find you."

He paused in mid-air and looked all around him. The Doctor moved back further towards the tree trunk, keeping his eye on his adversary. He looked around and noticed another study limb a few feet away in another tree. He watched Ian, and when his back was turned, he nimbly leapt over onto it and settled back down into the shadows.

"Show yourself, Doctor, before I decide to go back to your precious Rose and deal with her instead," he said. "And I'm sure you don't want me to do that!"

The Doctor looked around and noticed another limb near him. He looked back at Ian.

"Come and get me, coward!"

He quickly flew to the other limb as Ian turned his head and went towards the sound of his voice. Perching on the limb, he looked down at Ian who was busy inspecting the limb he had just left. Seizing the opportunity, he quietly left the limb and headed back the other way. As he headed towards another tree, he looked down and noticed a large limb lying on the ground. Smiling, he angled down, quietly snatched the limb up, and turned back towards Ian who was busy inspecting the rest of the tree.

"You might as well surrender, Doctor!" Ian said. "You can't keep up this hide and seek forever. Sooner or later, I will see you."

"True, but I think it'll be awhile before you "see" anything."

Ian turned and grunted, as the Doctor smacked him across the face with the limb as hard as he could. Ian smacked into the tree trunk and fell to the ground, dazed.

"Blast, didn't knock him out. Ah well, at least I made the boy see double."

He paused for a moment, and then flew down to Ian. Holding him with one hand, he quickly searched through his coat and smiled when he located his sonic screwdriver in an inside pocket.

"Thanks for keeping this with you," he said. "I can't tell you how much of a pain it is to make these things."

He flew out of reach when Ian made a grab for him. He quickly flew back down and decked him hard in the face, knocking him unconscious.

"Oh little sonic screwdriver, I missed you so much!" he said kissing it. "I feel naked without you!"

He looked down at Ian and looked up at the sky.

"About time for the sun to rise," he said. "Good. Because I have one last offer to make before I let the little bastard roast."

He flew down beside Ian.

"Come along, Ian, you and I need to talk," he said, gathering him into his arms before he flew away.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter Nineteen

Holding Ian in his arms, the Doctor flew back to Rose. As he neared her, he was relieved to see she was up and walking around. He smiled when Rose caught sight of him and let out a squeal of joy. He touched down on the roof beside her, quickly lowered Ian to the ground and enveloped her in his arms when she flung herself into them.

"Oh God, Doctor, am I glad to see you!" she said. "I woke up and I didn't see you, and I was so afraid Ian had done something to you!"

The Doctor kissed her cheek.

"I'm sorry I scared you, Rose, but I had to get Ian away from here before he killed you."

She looked down at him sprawled out on the roof.

"Why did you bring him back here then?" she asked.

"Because I need to talk to him, and I want to do it before the sun comes up."

Rose frowned.

"Talk? About what?" she said.

The Doctor started to speak when he suddenly noticed Ian beginning to stir.

"No time, just get behind me," he said.

He glanced up at the sky, as Rose moved around him and noticed it was beginning to lighten.

"Good, almost time for sunup," he said.

He pulled out his sonic screwdriver and aimed it at him, as Ian opened his eyes.

"Welcome back," the Doctor said.

He held up his hand when Ian leapt up and started to attack him.

"Wait!" he said.

"Why should I?"

The Doctor took hold of Rose, and they moved to the side. Ian's eyes bulged out of his head when he saw the sun starting to rise. He started to lift off into the air.

"Stay where you are!" the Doctor said.

"We'll finish this later!"

"No! We're gonna finish this now! If you fly off, I'll follow and I'll make sure you stay out in the open until the sun rises and kills you!"

"But you'll die too, Doctor," Rose said.

The Doctor shook his head.

"Sunlight doesn't kill a new vampire. It won't kill me until after the next full moon when I become immortal permanently. All the sunlight can do is give me sunburn, which is more than I can say for Ian here."

Ian glared at him. He threw his arms open.

"You win then, Doctor. I'll just stand here until the sun takes me," he said.

"Or…you can listen to my offer instead."

Ian frowned.

"What offer?" he said.

"I offer you a chance to live, Ian. Unlike you, I am capable of showing compassion even towards people who don't deserve it."

"You're letting me go?"

"I will, if you do as I say."

"Yeah, and what do I have to do?"

"Relocate."

"What to another city? Another country?"

"Another planet!"

Ian stared at him.

"What?"

"I know a planet that has no people on it, but does have plants and animals. One plant in particular is known as the Bleeding Corianthus and the reason it is called that is because it uses blood to attract insects and animals for its meals. It's not human flesh, but at least you will be sustained and you can live out your immortal life in peace."

"But, Doctor, if you let him live you'll be a vampire forever," Rose said.

"Not necessarily. There's always a solution to every problem and I'm sure as clever as I am I could find a way to reverse the vampirism," he said. "After all, I'm practically a vampire anyway. All I would need to do is reverse the two percent genetic difference between Time Lords and vampires."

He looked at her.

"In the meantime, I could get used to this. Flying is pretty cool," he said.

He looked back at Ian.

"So, how about it, Ian? Do you take my offer and live out your life on another planet, or do you force me to kill you?"

Ian looked over the Doctor's shoulder and noticed the sun just beginning to peek over the top of the buildings. He looked at the Doctor.

"What about the rest of my kind? Are you going to take them to this planet as well?" he asked.

"If I run into any others, I will make the same offer to them. But, I will not go actively hunt them out. The only reason I'm dealing with you is because you decided to threaten Rose."

He glanced back over his shoulder and saw the sun was rising quickly into the sky. He looked at Ian.

"So? My offer or death," he said. "Your choice."

Ian hesitated for a moment and then snarled at him.

"I won't be the one to leave this planet, Doctor. You will!" he said.

With a roar, he lunged at the Doctor and Rose. With lightning quick speed, the Doctor pushed Rose away, sidestepped Ian and grabbed him by the scruff of the neck as his momentum carried him past.

"Oh, why do they always have to do things the hard way?" he said.

Holding Ian in a death grip around his neck, he rose several feet into the air and held him out as the sun rose higher in the sky. He stared ahead impassively while Ian kicked and flailed in an attempt to get away.

"You'll pay for this, Doctor! You haven't seen the last of my kind!" Ian said.

"Nope, probably not," the Doctor said. "But I have seen the last of you."

He watched as Ian's body began to smoke. He tightened his grip on his neck when Ian let out a scream and desperately tried to break free.

"Hate to have to do this," he said to Ian. "But I offered you a chance to get out of it. I can't let you hurt Rose anymore."

He floated down to the roof, as Ian's body burst into flames. Touching the ground, he let go and stepped back while Ian writhed and screamed in agony.

"I will be avenged, Doctor! You have not seen the last of the immortals!" he said as flames consumed his body.

With one last scream, Ian's body broke apart and quickly disintegrated into ashes. The ashes continued to disintegrate until only a fine powder remained. Rose wrapped her arm around the Doctor as they watched the powder blow away into the morning sky.

"It's over, Rose. We're free," the Doctor said.

He turned and embraced Rose, as sunlight washed over their bodies.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter Twenty

"Oh, Rose, you're alright!" Jackie cried out, as she and the Doctor walked through the door.

The Doctor smiled when the two of them hugged one another tightly.

Jackie looked up at him and pulled him into the embrace.

"Oh, come here you!" she said hugging him tightly.

The Doctor hesitated and then hugged her lightly around the waist. Jackie broke out of the embrace and looked at him and Rose.

"So, is Ian taken care of?" she asked.

"Yup, Ian is no more. Rose is free."

Jackie squealed with delight and planted an enormous kiss on her cheek. The Doctor stiffened and resisted the urge to run while Rose giggled.

"I'll make you both some breakfast," she said heading towards the kitchen. "I bet you two are starving after all that happened last night."

"Famished," the Doctor said. "But I think I'll skip the bacon and eggs and just have a nip at your neck instead."

Jackie paused in mid-step. She turned and looked at him.

"What was that?"

"I said I wanted a go at your neck. Sorry, Jackie, but Ian bit me and I'm feeling a bit peckish for blood so can I have some of yours?"

"Oh, you had better be kidding, Doctor," Jackie said.

"I'm not actually. Ian did convert me, didn't he, Rose?"

"Yeah, he did, mum. He did it to save my life."

Jackie looked at them trying to decide if they were kidding or not.

"So, you're a vampire for real."

"Sure am and now, sadly, Rose is in my power. See, watch this."

He closed his eyes. He opened them slightly and stifled a laugh when Rose's face went blank and Jackie stared at her, panicked. He opened his eyes all the way and gestured to Rose.

"See? Under my thrall," he said casually.

"Well get her out from under your thrall then," Jackie said.

The Doctor shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't know how. Ian made me do it in the first place. I have no idea how to undo it."

"I'll undo it then when I get my big frying pan and cause you permanent brain damage!" Jackie said starting towards the kitchen.

"Slave, stop Jackie!" the Doctor said pointing at her.

"Yes, master!" Rose said. "I hear and I obey!"

Jackie gasped as Rose seized her wrist.

"Sorry, Jackie, guess you're not getting that frying pan now," the Doctor said walking up to her.

Jackie raised her hand to slap the Doctor's face; she paused when she noticed Rose giggling.

"Wait a moment, you're not hypnotized," she said.

"Nope, just playing along with the Doctor," Rose said.

Jackie glared at the Doctor when they both started to laugh.

"Oh ha, ha, really funny," Jackie said as Rose let go of her wrist. "You're a laugh a minute, you are."

"Actually, Jackie, I was a vampire for a couple of hours. I wasn't kidding about that. But as soon as Ian died, I returned to normal."

"Yes, thankfully, he was gonna let Ian go and remain a vampire forever," Rose said.

"And that was a bad thing?" the Doctor said.

"Yes, I would have been traveling with a walking corpse," Rose said.

"Yeah, but think of the advantages of being the girlfriend of a walking corpse. I could have sped you around the mall and let you get the clothes you wanted before anyone else got to them. We could have had romantic moonlit flights and necking would have taken on a completely new meaning. The only drawbacks would have been me having to hide in the TARDIS doing the day and you cramming into a tight little coffin with me."

He paused.

"Actually, I would put that bit over into the plus column," he said. "The point is I would have been a better, stronger Doctor if Ian hadn't been so obstinate. We would have had to come back here more frequently so I could feed on your mother but isn't that worth it?"

He backed away when he saw Jackie giving him a look of death.

"Then again, maybe not," he said.

Jackie rolled her eyes and walked into the kitchen, as the Doctor nudged Rose and grinned at her.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Oh, at last we can be on our way again," Rose said, as she sat on the captain's chair and watched the Doctor punched in the coordinates.

He grinned at her.

"Why, Rose Tyler, is my aversion to the Tyler flat rubbing off on you at last?"

"No, it's just that I wanna go somewhere where I won't run into any vampires. At least not for awhile."

She paused a moment.

"Doctor, do you think other vampires will get revenge for what you did to Ian?" she said.

The Doctor stared off into space.

"Who knows? I'm not sure how well connected the vampires are to one another and if they notice if one of their own go missing. I told you I was 98 percent vampire and I said that Time Lords can feel the presence of other Time Lords, so maybe the same is true for vampires."

"So, there's a possibility that the next time I go home, there could be other vampires lying in wait for us?" Rose asked.

"Well, if that's the case, there's a simple solution to that."

"And that is?"

The Doctor grinned at her.

"Never go home again."

Rose raised her eyebrow.

"I'm sure you're just waiting for me to say yes to that," she said.

The Doctor gave her a look of innocence.

"No, I enjoy my visits with your mum. I just love eating semi-burnt and inedible food while the smell of cheap perfume lingers in the air above me. I can't imagine how I ever survived 900 years without Jackie Tyler in my life."

He giggled when Rose slapped his back. He put his arm around her and pulled her close to her.

"Anyway, if there are vampires waiting for us when we get back, we'll take care of em like we did Ian."

"We?"

"Yes, Rose, we. You and I are a team even if you don't think that sometimes and I know that whenever I get in a bind."

He paused.

"Which isn't often, mind you," he said, his eyes twinkling with laughter. "I know I can rely on you to save my gorgeous butt."

Rose looked behind him.

"Mmmm, gorgeous butt. I agree with that," she said pinching it.

The Doctor laughed and kissed the top of her head.

"Now, my bride," he said imitating Dracula. "You vill accompany me to another planet vere ve vill save the universe again and then I vill suck your blood aftervards!"

"Nah, not my blood. You can suck other things though."

The Doctor's eyebrows rose almost to the top of his head.

"Well, let's hurry up and get to the next destination then and get that baddie dispatched."

Rose giggled and leaned against him. She let out a contented sigh as she laid her head against the Doctor's chest and listened to the quiet rhythmic beat of his two hearts.

THE END.

A/N: The story continues on in Endless Night.


End file.
